A Romance Of Champions
by Kurt's Anatomy
Summary: When Harry continuously refuses to accept her help during the Triwizard Tournament, Hermione finds that there are other champions who are willing to take it and ends up finding everything she was missing. GoF AU Hermione/Cedric/Viktor endgame
1. Take Your Heart And Walk Away

A Romance Of Champions

 **When Harry continuously refuses to accept her help during the Triwizard Tournament, Hermione finds that there are other champions who are willing to take it and ends up finding everything she was missing. GoF AU Hermione/Cedric/Viktor endgame**

 **I know this is a slightly weird pairing for some and I had this originally written as Hermione/Cedric, but I couldn't resist adding Viktor into the mix.**

Chapter 1- Take Your Heart And Walk Away

* * *

Hermione was completely fed up of that stupid boy and his willingness to ignore something that could possibly kill him. He was well aware of the dragons and wasn't bothering to use his newfound knowledge to his benefit. She had figured that from the moment that his name was extracted from the Goblet of Fire that he would work consistently, knowing that he had a definite disadvantage against the older and more talented wizards.

Of course, he was determined to slack off as much as possible, maybe _just_ to annoy her to her wit's end.

Even without the influence of Ron, Harry simply had no desire to even think about the First Task until it was approaching. Well, now it was approaching. And Harry was _still_ slacking off.

So Hermione decided to confront him about it, in true Hermione Granger fashion.

"Harry," she began. "Don't you think it's important that you try to prepare for the First Task anytime soon? I mean, you have an advantage! You know what it's going to be. You can study dragons and find their weaknesses and try to plan some strategies. I've already started doing some research and I have a few suggestions that might help you out a little bit."

"Hermione, stop. It'll be _fine_. I'll just act on my initiative. It's worked before."

Hermione was not impressed. "Let's take a look back, shall we? First year, Ronald and I were the only reason you got past the Devil's Snare, the Chessboard and Snape's Potions Challenge. Without us, you would have been crushed by the Devil's Snare and Voldemort would have taken the Philosopher's Stone. Second year, if I hadn't have practically given you the answer to the big mystery, you wouldn't have even known that there was a Basilisk in the school! Tom Riddle would have killed Ginny. Third year, okay you handled the Dementors, but where would you be if I didn't have the Time Turner or if I didn't learn how to imitate a werewolf howl? You would be _dead_ , Harry. The Boy Who Lived title means nothing if you don't care about living. At the moment, you're giving up. You'll be on your _own_ in that arena and I don't think that I can help you any more than I already am! So make your mind up whether you want to live or die, won't you?"

Harry was stunned. Hermione had kept relatively quiet about her frustration towards his lackadaisical attitude towards…well, everything and she had reached her limit. "Tell me how you really feel why don't you?"

"You know what, Harry, if you're not going to take this seriously, what is the point?"

"We're friends. That's the point! Or at least it's supposed to be." Harry sighed.

Hermione crossed her arms and shook her head. "That's the way that it used to be. Now, I'm not even sure. You and Ronald always seem to be friends with me when it's convenient for you. I help you with homework, give you advice, but what do I get in return? A whole lot of _nothing_."

"Wow, Hermione, you really know what to say to someone that has been entered in a Tournament which could actually kill him."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Oh, _please_. You certainly know how to proactively try to not die in said Tournament. You're not even acting like you care!"

"Of _course_ I care."

"Then prove it. Go to the library now and do some research. Actually, you know what? I don't care anymore. Do what you like. I'm out."

"Hermione, wait," Harry tried feebly, but Hermione was done.

"Absolutely not. I'm going to the library. I have Ancient Runes homework that I should have a week ago but I deferred due to helping _you_. Well, just like the Tournament intended, you're all on your own. Or maybe Ron will come around and you two can procrastinate together. Good luck, Harry."

Hermione exited the portrait hole and grunted repeatedly at Harry's lack of consideration for his own life.

Eventually, she reached the library and planted the biggest book that she could find right in front of her. Flicking open the pages, but not actually reading them, she sighed.

"Stupid boys," She whispered to herself but, as she looked up, she realised that she wasn't alone.

"Boy trouble?" A voice that sounded as though it was actually dipped in melted honey rumbled through her corner. Even though she hadn't heard it much, she could recognise it anywhere.

"Cedric Diggory. To what do I owe the pleasure?" Hermione smiled kindly but couldn't stamp down on the vine of… _something_ that grew in her chest. What it was she didn't actually know. And she wasn't sure that she wanted to just yet.

Cedric shrugged. "You know, just trying not to die in a competition where the possibility is quite likely without the correct preparation."

Hermione's smile grew wider because Cedric just _got it_. He understood how dangerous the Tournament was. That just proved that the Age Restriction was necessary because Harry hadn't the slightest inkling about how to ensure his own survival and that was just stupid.

"Your look tells me that Harry hasn't been doing the same and you've been working harder than he has."

Hermione blinked. "You got all of that from a look?"

Cedric smirked. "And also the fact that I saw him playing Exploding Snap for about an hour with Dean Thomas in one of our designated study periods for the Tournament."

Hermione shook her head, huffing. "Unbelievable. But yes, you're right. I'm tired of doing all of the work for him."

Cedric perched on the edge of the table, looking down at her, frowning. "May I ask exactly _what_ work you've been doing? Is it just general spellcasting or something with a more focused objective?"

That was when Hermione realised that Harry had been selfish and had not warned Cedric about the dragons. She had cajoled him for hours about doing the right thing as Fleur and Viktor already knew, but apparently he had not taken her advice. As usual.

Hermione leaned forward. "Cedric, there's something that I think you ought to know. All of the other Champions know what you have to face in the First Task."

Cedric's surprised look both enraged her and filled her with sympathy. She had been in the dark for far too long before but, this time in Cedric's case, it actually mattered. "They do?"

Hermione nodded. "I told Harry to tell you, but I guess he wanted to further his chances, which are becoming exponentially slimmer with every day that goes by without research."

"I assume you're going to tell me, but how did they know?"

"Well, Hagrid knows and he's sweet on Madame Maxime, who is conversing with Igor Karkaroff so that the Hogwarts duo don't win the Tournament."

Cedric's face dropped. "So, if Hagrid knows, why wasn't I clued in?"

Hermione shrugged, reflecting on what was a good question. "Hagrid and Harry have this bond with each other. I think that Harry thinks he owes Hagrid a lot because he was the one to tell him that he was a wizard. And Hagrid dotes on Harry because of his parents, I think. It's all quite strange, I find."

Cedric nodded before bracing himself. He rubbed the hem of his robes in between his fingers. "So, what do we have to face in the First Task?"

Hermione inhaled. "It's dragons. They have one for each of the Champions. I'm guessing that the dragons are assigned at random and they will possibly be at different levels of ferocity. I was reading up on everything that I could find about the Tournament and, occasionally, luck is an important factor. You just have to pray that you don't get the Hungarian Horntail."

Cedric nodded, wincing automatically. "Dragons, huh? I'll do some reading. I don't suppose you'd like to help me. I don't want to take you away from your studies, but I would appreciate the help. I know how thirsty for knowledge you can get."

Hermione preened. Cedric was asking for her help, the help that she had been impatiently waiting to give to Harry. "Of course, I would love to. This shouldn't impact my academics at all. I'm on top of it. Well, I will be once I stop worrying about Harry. Oh, but now I have _you_ to worry about! But I suppose that you can handle yourself better than Harry can. You're at least wise enough to accept my help."

"You worry about me?" Cedric flashed that dazzling smile and Hermione's breath was taken away. Cedric Diggory really was beautiful. She had noticed, but hadn't noticed just how beautiful he was.

"Sure I do. Ever since the Quidditch World Cup. We did have quite the illuminating discussion on the walk there about wizarding politics. I worry about all of my friends, not that I'll have many anymore after my argument with Harry."

Cedric grinned, remembering the memory fondly. "Hey, if things come to worst, you'll have all the Diggory supporters on your side." He winked. "Plus, I believe that Viktor Krum has his eye on you, too."

"Too?" She hadn't missed that.

Cedric just kept on smiling. He lowered his voice slightly. "I always thought that you were dating Harry."

Hermione frowned, surprised. "What? Does it look that way? I mean, we were friends, close friends, but never! I would never _date_ Harry."

Cedric held his hands up. "Just a few rumours that went around. I wasn't sure what to believe. I tried observing you both at the World Cup, but I didn't see anything worth confirming the rumour over. I think that the extent of it was you picking lint from his shirt."

Hermione giggled, something that was genuinely rare. She laughed, sure, but _giggling_? Not so much.

"That is more of a motherly action than anything else," Hermione said.

"That definitely calls for a point in my favour," Cedric raised his eyebrow.

Hermione narrowed her eyes. "How do you mean?"

"The fact that you're not interested in dating Harry works out pretty well for me. You know, in case I actually work up the courage to formally ask you out."

Hermione decided to be out of character and play curveball. "Well, what if I'm already with Krum by that point?"

Cedric laughed and shrugged. "Well, he's incredibly gorgeous, so I wouldn't mind getting in on that, even if it was only to watch."

Hermione's eyes bulged.

"Bisexuality _is_ a thing in the wizarding world, you know?"

"I figured. I just didn't expect you to be…"

Cedric sighed. "Not many people do. It's why it makes it so much fun to tell people. They go through the whole shocked phase and then start to grill me about which boys I think are cute."

Hermione smirked. "Come to think of it, you didn't seem to be as wonderstruck by the Veela at the Quidditch World Cup as everybody else was."

"Well, when sporting hero Viktor Krum is flying around, there are more interesting things to be concentrating on."

Hermione nodded and grinned. "So, do you think Krum's hotter than Fleur?"

Cedric rolled his eyes. "Well, that's basically the bisexual version of _Sophie's Choice_!" At Hermione's confused expression, he elaborated. "Last summer, for some extra credit for Muggle Studies, I decided to integrate with the Muggle world a bit more and I watched a _lot_ of movies. I cannot believe that wizards haven't discovered Meryl Streep."

Hermione laughed, agreeing. "She is amazing. But you're deflecting."

"Well, Krum is one of those guys that you have a crush on from an early age. If you had grown up a sports fan in the wizarding world, you would have had the poster in your bedroom. Fleur is a natural beauty, but she knows that she's elegant. She uses it too much. I know that that's the Veela way, but still, it's a little disconcerting."

Hermione was about to agree, but Cedric continued to talk.

"Now you, on the other hand, have no idea truly how beautiful you are. Probably because those clueless friends of yours never noticed it. I have. Krum has. You're a catch, Granger." He nudged her awkwardly.

"Thank you, Cedric. I'm sure scores of girls tell you that you're insanely handsome."

Cedric shuffled modestly.

"Just as I thought. But I like how you don't play on that, just as Fleur does. I know that Viktor uses his celebrity when he needs to, but I hear that he is rather humble about it, like you."

"Thank you, Hermione. It means a lot that you think such things."

"Everyone does. I heard from the biggest gossipmongers in the school that Cho Chang fancies the pants off you."

Cedric nodded glumly. "She does. Or, well, she did. She didn't take my sexuality too kindly. Marietta Edgecombe apparently has some strong views on the matter, as does Cho. Anything between us ended right there and then."

"Honestly, I've never really liked her. Sure, she's beautiful, but she seems a little too vapid to be in Ravenclaw."

"I know what you mean. She mostly likes to talk about snow. I know, it's weird," Cedric replied.

A comfortable silence drifted over them as Hermione remembered why she was there and why Cedric was there, too.

"The dragon. I'm going to help you formulate a plan to deal with it. You're going to get first place in this task if it kills me."

Cedric stared at her lexical choice. She faltered under his gaze. "Oh, you know what I mean. You're going to win, Cedric."

Cedric smiled genuinely at her and, for the first time since his name was drawn from the Goblet of Fire, realised his potential as a possible Triwizard Champion.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Ugh, I know other stories require my attention, but I could NOT leave this alone! This is my first venture into the HP universe without a crossover with _Glee_ , so fingers crossed that this turns out well! Hopefully you guys like it! More soon! Review please! xoxo**


	2. Seeking Something More

Chapter 2- Seeking Something More

* * *

Days after her interesting conversation with Cedric, Hermione was in the library once again, not for the first time either to help him figure out what he was going to do against the dragon. She had some ideas, but nothing solid as of yet.

In the morning times, she had sat with the Hufflepuff table, despite the odd looks that she was receiving from just about everyone. Professor McGonagall had talked to her privately about how sitting with other Houses is not a rule that she had broken, but more something that was frowned upon by the Hogwarts staff and students. Hermione had explained that she felt more comfortable sitting with Cedric than with any of the Gryffindors, leading to her concluding that she was no longer friends with Harry.

She had caught the boy's eye several times during breakfast the morning after their argument. He had an almost apologetic look in his eye. Hermione had thought about going over there and talking to him several times, thinking that perhaps she was a little rash with her decision, but Cedric reminded her that without Ron, and now her, Harry was basically friendless. Seamus, Neville and Dean still believed that he put his name in the Goblet of Fire without telling them about it and nobody else had really bothered with him before. Cedric figured that it was because of his close friendships with her and Ron. They were so tightly knit that nobody dared even try to interfere in their lives. 'The Golden Trio' had come apart oh so easily, Hermione thought and she wanted to snigger at the idea of what everybody must have been thinking during the tension between Harry and Hermione, and Harry and Ron.

Truthfully, Hermione had never _really_ bothered with Ron. They weren't particularly close, by no means. They were friends because of Harry. Ron wanted her to help him pass his classes, but what did Hermione get in return? Nothing. It was like with Harry. He got help and support but Hermione gone nothing back from him. The difference with Cedric was that he gave her things in return. Words of encouragement and support, helpful life advice, plus any homework help that she needed. Not that she _did_ , but Cedric had aced all of his fourth year classes and was exempt from his seventh year classes due to the Tournament, so he had more time to look over things for her. Usually, the verdict was that Hermione needed no improvements on her essays, but she liked the idea of somebody close to her proofreading it just in case her mind was elsewhere and she slipped up.

The latest Hogsmeade visit was upon them and everybody was itching to show the Beauxbatons and Durmstrang students about the village. Cedric had taken up the opportunity to spend some time relaxing before the First Task was upon him and invited Hermione to go along with him and his friends. She was nose-deep in a book when he asked and she had looked up, surprised.

"You actually want to me to go? You don't just want me to fill up the carriage?"

Cedric sighed. "Harry and Ron truly did a number on you, didn't they?" Hermione shrugged.

"Well, I've never been really invited places because people want me to go. There's always been an ulterior motive. It's not just Harry and Ron."

Cedric tutted. "I don't understand why you're still defending them both. Besides, those people who didn't appreciate you are clearly deluded. Do you want to come?"

Hermione immediately nodded, then shook her head, biting her lip. "I probably shouldn't. I can spend this time researching the dragons. Maybe I can have a talk with Hagrid…or maybe not. He'll probably spend most of my visit there wondering what happened between Harry and I. Never mind. I can spend some time researching more about the Tournament, maybe. And the customs? Whatever I do, it's time that I can spent looking things up for you. I don't mind. Have a nice time at the village."

Cedric pondered this and figured it would be best not to fight her on it, but wanted to make sure she knew how much he wanted her there. "I'd really like you to be there, but I completely get why you want to stay and it's the sweetest thing that you want to take care of me during this Task. Thank you, Hermione. With your help, I'm going to win."

"I think you'd win anyway. Harry doesn't have a clue, the underestimation of Fleur will drag her confidence down and Viktor..."

"You think he's a threat." It wasn't a question.

Hermione nodded. "I do. He has a fan base internationally for a reason. He's modest and people root for him. But I think you've got him beat, Cedric."

Cedric grinned smugly. "Of course I do. I have you as my own personal researcher."

"And there's your ulterior motive," Hermione clapped her hands together. "Told you, everybody has one!"

Cedric groaned falsely. "You got me there. No, Hermione, you're more than just a researcher. I kind of wanted us to go on a date to Hogsmeade today."

Hermione blushed as Cedric took her hand in his. "I promise that we'll go another time. After the First Task. Because if we start to date and you die while facing your dragon, I'll never forgive you for it. Once you've survived the Task, I'll happily go with you to Hogsmeade."

Cedric nodded, swallowing. "No pressure then. Now I have an extra incentive. If I win, will you kiss me afterwards?"

Hermione smirked. Actually smirked. "If you can beat Viktor, you can have all the kisses you want," she challenged. She knew one thing about boys and that was that they loved a challenged and most of them needed to be the best at their business.

Cedric laughed, hugging her goodbye and joining his friends on the carriage to Hogsmeade. Hermione smiled brightly and waved goodbye.

* * *

Ten minutes later, she found herself in her usual corner of the library. She assumed that she would not be disturbed because everybody would have been going to Hogsmeade to enjoy the day. Truthfully, Hermione _really_ didn't want to spend the day answering questions about Harry and Ron or, worse still, face Harry and Ron and have another confrontational encounter with Harry about his lack of effort in the Tournament that could very well kill him. She wasn't going to pretend like she wasn't worried, but she wasn't going to spend every waking minute thinking that Harry was going to die in any one of these tasks.

As she pulled out a book on the Tournament, which had been moved from the Restricted Section due to the necessity of learning more about it because of the upcoming First Task, she stopped slightly, hearing movement from behind her. Holding the book to her chest and spinning around, she gasped.

"Hello," Viktor Krum's low voice greeted somewhat pleasantly.

Hermione was a little taken aback. Not in the star struck way that most of the students (and teachers) at Hogwarts were due to Viktor's celebrity status, but because he was talking to her. People didn't just decide one day to talk to her. They usually wanted something.

"Hello," she replied warmly. It wasn't the quickest conversation starter, but it was jovial, at least.

"How come you are not in Hogsmeade?" Viktor wondered simply. Hermione was impressed with how well he formulated his sentences, what with English not being his native language.

Hermione shrugged. "I just wanted a quiet day to myself with a book."

Viktor crouched and peered up at the book she was holding. " _The Triwizard Tournament: A Champion's Guide To Survival_? This does not seem like prescribed reading for your studies."

Hermione shook her head. "I…I was reading books about the Tournament so that I could try and help Cedric some more. He was put at a disadvantage already, so he needs all the support he can get."

Viktor frowned. "How so?"

Hermione bit her lip. "He wasn't informed about the dragons until recently. I had to be the one to tell him since nobody else was going to." She realised that might have sounded a little harsh, as if she was blaming him for not talking to Cedric about it. "I don't mean you, I mean Harry. And Hagrid. They were supposed to fill him in, but he was cheated out of the knowledge."

Viktor grunted. "That does not sound fair. If I had known that Hogwarts was going to play favourites with their Champions, I would have spoken to Cedric myself. Does he have a strategy?"

Hermione was a little suspicious of this. "Do you?"

Viktor held his hands up. "I did not mean to pry. I was just making conversation. But yes, I do have a game plan for this Task. Though it does need refining in places, it should work. I only wish I had somebody like you on my side."

Without her permission, Hermione's face heated up. "I'm sure you've got plenty of support on your side."

"Nobody as dedicated and caring as you."

"You don't even know me," Hermione whispered softly.

"I know what I need to know. You are passionate about things. I have been in the library a lot, Hermione. I glance at you sometimes, when you are reading. You look so engrossed in what you are learning and I find it very endearing."

"I just like learning," she admitted.

"Are you and Cedric an item?"

Hermione tilted her head. "Why are you asking?"

"You seem very…defensive."

Hermione sighed. "I don't meant to be. It's just that…people don't really engage in social conversation with me unless they want something."

Viktor sat down opposite her. "I do want something. You. Or at least I did, before the implication that you were unavailable."

"Cedric and I, we're not an item. It seems to be going that way, but…" Hermione broke off, not quite knowing what to say. Hopefully, Viktor would fill in the blanks without her actually having to say it. She and Cedric…

She sighed.

She and Cedric were going somewhere. She liked him and he liked her. That was all well and good but his participation in the Tournament could potentially scupper all of that. Well, not really, but Hermione wasn't ready to think about anything that could possibly split them apart. Those consequences weren't easy to consider at that moment in time.

"You have mutual interest, but nothing has come of it yet. Do you have…reservations about being exclusive with him?"

Hermione paused to consider this, but was distracted when she felt his hand on her outstretched hand. His soft fingers rubbed over her skin gently. She felt a flutter in her chest; the same as when she was around Cedric.

"Maybe some…I don't know. How do you seem to be reading my mind right now?"

Viktor cocked his head. "It's how people work. There's some interest, but does anybody truly know how to get things going?"

"I suppose not. Viktor, why are you asking these questions?"

"I want to get to know you. I…might also want to get to know Cedric a little better, too." Viktor bit his lip and Hermione wanted to gape at him.

Viktor was also bisexual? Two bisexual guys had an interest in her! And she also had an interest in them! And they had an interest in each other?

Was polygamy even an option for witches and wizards?

She suddenly found herself not knowing.

Good thing she was in the library.

"I would like to become friends with you both. And who knows what may happen from there? But I don't want to intrude upon anything currently happening between you and Cedric. If you're open to possibilities, I may have a solution. That is, if Cedric is game. I have heard promising things about his sexuality. Well, promising for me."

Hermione just stared.

"For somebody whom I thought loquacious, you don't have a lot of words on this subject."

"I'm just…shocked."

"What, that I am also into boys?"

"No, how there's a polyamorous triangle of romantic entanglement," Hermione stated once she found her words.

"And it is all mutual?"

Hermione said nothing,

Viktor smirked, getting the hint.

Hermione peered around the corner, hearing the usual gaggle of girls. "Looks like your sycophants are back."

Viktor paled and got up. "I was never here. But I will return. For you. Good day, Hermione."

Hermione bit her lip and opened her book, at long last. Finding the words flitting across the page and swirling around her brain without being truly registered, she slammed it shut again.

Hermione sighed.

Boys.


	3. Game Plan

Chapter 3- Game Plan

* * *

With Viktor's express permission, Hermione had told Cedric all about their conversation. Instead of seeing the spikes of jealousy she thought would burst his usually controlled demeanour, she saw hints of excitement and a flash of lust in his eyes.

The three had yet to come together but Hermione reckoned that a convergence was not too far away, considering the imminence of the First Task. She had been working with Cedric on his plan for quite a while now and she was adamant that he would succeed. She still was not sure as to what Viktor's approach was, but she had a fairly educated guess in mind. It was quite obvious, once she thought about it a little bit. Viktor Krum was known for his flying abilities. Who would he be if he didn't utilise them? She figured that he would.

Cedric was extremely intrigued by Viktor's attitudes towards both Hermione and himself. Viktor _was_ open to whatever might potentially happen between the tree of them and Cedric was quite happy about that. It certainly helped that Viktor was very upfront about what he wanted, leaving no questions to be asked at the end of it all. Cedric knew what he wanted, of course, but he wasn't completely sure about Hermione.

He knew that she wanted _something_ with both of them, but wasn't sure if she wanted them together. Not sexually, of course, well not yet anyway. But emotionally. Did Hermione want to be dating two guys at the same time? Cedric didn't really know and would leave Hermione to make up her own mind when she saw fit.

Cedric geared up for their designated study period for the First Task as their mentors discussed strategy with them. As there were two Hogwarts champions, both Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall had been enlisted as their assigned mentors. They would take a session with one and refine their game plan with the other. The teachers were not supposed to know that every Champion now knew about the dragons, so everybody kept things hypothetical.

As he walked down to the Transfiguration classroom where they were supposed to account for themselves, he felt somebody walk beside him.

"Hello, Cedric," Viktor Krum's thick accent muttered jovially from next to him. Viktor smiled and stretched out his hand.

Cedric was quite surprised; it had not been that long since Hermione and Viktor had their conversation. Viktor was _already_ speaking to him about it. "Viktor, hello." Cedric shook his proffered hand.

"Hermione informed me that you have only just learned of the dragons."

Cedric nodded. "Unfair politics," he grumbled. He still wasn't over the fact that he had kept purposefully kept in the dark.

"I know what you mean. Maxime and Karkaroff are conversing privately to ensure that Hogwarts has a disadvantage. Apparently, Potter wasn't supposed to know."

"According to Hermione, he has this special relationship with the gamekeeper who showed him the dragons. It's all complicated, apparently. It's best not to dwell on it, so I haven't."

"That's probably the wise choice. Hermione really does have all of the answers doesn't she?" Viktor let out a small laugh.

"She really does. And I'm glad that I'm not alone in my appreciation of her. She doesn't think that people like her."

Viktor snorted. It was a curious sound, to Cedric, and he wondered if it had come naturally. "They don't," the Bulgarian boy said not unkindly. "They're jealous of her and they're terrified by everything that comes with that.

Cedric agreed. "The pure bloods, particularly the Slytherin house, are angry that a Muggle born student is outranking them in the class ranking system each year. Hermione has been first all three years of testing."

Viktor whistled. "I'm not surprised. Frankly, it surprises me that other people are surprised. She's…something special."

"She really is. You are too, you know," Cedric said warmly.

"You don't know me, Cedric," Viktor pointed out. Cedric conceded this.

"I'd like to. Wow, I'm really having this conversation with my teenage sporting hero and crush."

"You crushed on me?"

"As did all of Wizarding Europe. You say that like it's impossible." Cedric scoffed.

Viktor blushed. "Not impossible. It's just rare that I'm liked for more than my Quidditch ability. Yes, there's a group of gaggling girls running around after me when I exercise, but they want the poster boy. Nobody's ever wanted me for me before and that's something else entirely."

Cedric didn't understand, but then suddenly he did. Hermione, Viktor and himself were in the same proverbial boat. They were all appreciated for what they were known for, but nobody ever thought to dig deeper. Hermione had her intelligence, Viktor had his athleticism and Cedric had his generic good looks.

"I understand," he said with a smile. "I really do. And I know that Hermione does as well. That's why I think that we all fit really well together."

Viktor smirked. "You're thinking about that already?" He added a wink at the end.

Cedric let out a laugh. "I would be lying if I said that I wasn't. I'm not actively considering it just yet, I mean we've only just met each other, really. But I'm thinking. I'm a teenage boy confronted with the idea of having two beautiful lovers. What else do you expect?"

"I keep thinking about what it would be like. Even with only one of you it would be amazing. But with both of you? That's a feeling I can't even begin to imagine."

"Have you…before?"

"No," Viktor said coolly. "You?"

Cedric shook his head. "It never felt right. There have been…opportunities, but every time it's just felt wrong."

"I know what you mean," Viktor sighed wistfully. "I've had chances in the past. A lot of them, actually. But nothing has ever _really_ tempted me before…"

"Before Hermione?"

"Before _you_ and Hermione."

Cedric smiled modestly. "I appreciate your bluntness, Viktor. I would not be averse to making something happen."

"I think we need to confront the idea in a purely platonic way, first," Viktor said.

"Of course," Cedric acquiesced. "I know Hermione will prefer it that way at the beginning, too. She's nothing if not overly analytic and prudent often to a fault."

"You speak of her like you've known her your whole life," Viktor observed sharply.

"I feel like I have sometimes," Cedric bit his lip. "I've never taken to somebody so quickly. Well, maybe besides you. This is our first proper conversation and we've already pragmatically hinted at things beyond our acquaintanceship level."

Viktor shrugged. "We know what we want and don't want to have to wait for it. That's perfectly acceptable."

Cedric nodded as eyes turned towards them. Fleur and Harry were already stationed at their respective tables. Dumbledore looked over his glasses at them. McGonagall didn't really care for the current situation. Maxime raised a curious eyebrow and her eyes darted to Karkaroff, who looked as stoic as he usually did.

Viktor leaned in. "They think we're fraternising."

"Aren't we?" Cedric grinned. Karkaroff glared at them both.

"Viktor. Time for planning." The Bulgarian Seeker nodded and went to his table, clapping Cedric on the back. Cedric shook his head fondly and went to the seat opposite McGonagall and rubbed his hands together.

"Thank you for your punctuality, Mr. Diggory," McGonagall said sardonically. "I take it you have something to run by me?"

McGonagall cast a privacy charm and Cedric's eyes lighted and he began to talk through the beginning of the strategy that he and Hermione had provisionally conjured. As he spoke, Cedric's eyes flickered to the right, where Viktor sat speaking to Karkaroff. His handsome face was aptly animated as he talked about the Task. Viktor's eyes met his and Cedric felt a wave of heat rush over him. Shaking it off, he continued looking at McGonagall and tried not looking at the other Champion until he needed to. Viktor Krum was a massive distraction whichever way you looked at it.

After Cedric had refined his plan with Dumbledore, who seemed mildly interested at best, he stood up, only just refraining from complaining about the bias that was already present in the Tournament. The First Task had not even begun yet and they were already working against him, however inadvertent it was. He could understand the machinations of the Beauxbatons and Durmstrang mentors; Hogwarts had been given "two bites of the apple" as Madam Maxime had said. Cedric supposed that it was wise to try and overcome that disadvantage by teaming up in a subtle way. Viktor hadn't said anything to him about Fleur but that was irrelevant. The fact that Fleur and Viktor were both clued in on the dragons meant that Cedric's observations were true.

"Diggory," Cedric heard a voice call as he went to leave. He caught Viktor's gaze and rolled his eyes before turning around.

"Potter," Cedric replied somewhat coldly. He wasn't particularly happy with the boy these days, for his treatment of Hermione and for neglecting to mention the dragons. "I'm not entirely sure why you're talking to me, but continue."

Harry scowled. "What's going on with you and Hermione? She hasn't spoken to me since she started hanging around with you."

Cedric sighed. He should have known. "Have you actually attempted to talk to her?"

"Well, no, but she usually talks to me every day, I—."

"So isn't that your problem? I'm sure that if _you_ tried talking to _her_ , she would clear things up for you. I wouldn't want to say anything that Hermione isn't thinking or feeling without consulting her first."

Harry shrugged. That was fair enough, he guessed. "Okay. Thanks, Cedric."

"He's not going to like this," Viktor's low voice pointed out helpfully.

"No," Cedric agreed. "But, frankly, I don't care. Whatever happens will happen and that's about us and nobody else."

Viktor smirked. "I have a feeling that this is going to be one amazing year."

* * *

Hermione looked between the two boys opposite her curiously. Just what exactly had transpired while they had spent the afternoon together? Hermione didn't know. Apparently, something had happened. She knew this purely through the weight of the glances between them.

"So, welcome to the first official Hermione Granger Triwizard Tournament Strategy Meeting."

"Does it have to have a name, Hermione?" Cedric smirked.

Hermione shrugged. "I suppose not. It just made me feel more like a teacher and not the know it all suggesting possible strategies."

Cedric and Viktor went to protest at the same but Hermione held up a hand and shook her head. "I didn't mean it like that. Anyway, shall we just get on. What did you two figure out today?"

Viktor smiled. "Well, my original plan was to summon my broomstick and lead the dragon away and circle back and grab the egg. Simple enough and it plays to my strengths.

"Karkaroff made me realise that the dragon is chained up during the Task so it won't be able to go far anyway. So I'm going to have to think of something different. Flying was a little predictable anyway."

Hermione thought for a moment. "How about doing something that will shock the spectators and the judges. Something that isn't very _you_. You might get additional points for doing something outside of what you're known for. Maybe rendering the dragon unable to hurt you."

Viktor chuckled. "I'm not exactly powerful enough to put a huge dragon in a full Body-Bind or Stun it. Maybe…the Conjunctivitis Curse?"

Hermione smiled, her eyes lighting with knowledge. "That would definitely work. A dragon's sense of smell isn't exactly stellar and its eyesight is. Blind it and you'll have a clear path. Maybe impede it, too, because there's a chance that its rage levels will increase. You'll need an afterthought."

Viktor scrawled some notes down with a quill and nodded. "Thank you, Hermione. I think I'm going to do that."

Hermione turned to Cedric. "Have you thought about things that you can Transfigure? I know you were speaking with McGonagall today."

Cedric paused before nodding. "She has some ideas. Dumbledore was absolutely no help, whatsoever. He just listened and stalled me by thinking until the time was up. During his talk with Harry, he looked completely animated."

Hermione sighed. "Boy Who Lived bias strikes again. It's a Dumbledore thing, I wouldn't dwell on it. So what did McGonagall say?"

"She suggested that I take the dragon's focus away from me somehow. I said that I would have to look around to see what I could transfigure since we can't see the arena before we emerge during the task. I figure there'll be some kind of spherical object or something. So I was thinking that I would transfigure it into a dog or some kind of distracting animal. The dragon will go for that. Then I had another idea. What if I performed a Disillusionment Charm so that the dragon didn't detect me while I went for the egg? I would be quiet and just snatch the egg."

Hermione beamed at him. "Perfect. You both have really wonderful plans. Fleur and Harry are going to wonder why they didn't think of them. I wonder what their plans are and I wonder how they're going to feel when they lose and you two win and—oh I'm getting ahead of myself."

"You're cute when you ramble," Cedric commented kindly. Hermione blushed.

"You're cute when you blush, too," Viktor added with a wink. Hermione's blush became even deeper.

Hermione exhaled deeply. "Okay, I don't want to skirt around this any longer. What exactly is the plan here?"

Cedric and Viktor looked at each other. Cedric cleared his throat. "Viktor and I were speaking about it before. We figured that it would be better if we went at this purely platonically first and then just…go where our feelings take us in the near future. When we feel something and feel like it's too potent, then we'll act."

Viktor blushed. "Only if you are comfortable with this, Hermione."

Hermione nodded. "I…feel drawn to you both. I don't know quite how to explain it, but I feel like I want both of you in my life."

"Romantically?" Viktor pressed.

"Yes," Hermione said shortly. Cedric and Viktor grinned, blushes staining their faces.

"What do we do about the rest of Hogwarts?" Cedric posited.

Viktor shrugged. "Why do they have to be included in our plans?"

Hermione took up this one. "Because they are going to talk. This is going to create chaos. Cedric Diggory, Hogwarts' very own poster boy for perfection and Viktor Krum, international Quidditch sensation."

Viktor stopped her because her self-deprecating explanation belittled her. "Both them dating Hermione Granger, the brightest witch in Hogwarts, is bound to cause an uprising. But we aren't those people, Hermione. We're more than that. All three of us possess more in our hearts that they see. That's why we have more room to love. And nobody else sees that. Why don't we let them? We do this, we let them see that we're not just who they want us to be. Let's make something worth having."

Cedric and Hermione were surprised at Viktor's passion and loquaciousness. Cedric looked across the girl who smiled.

"Let's do this. When the time is right, we make something happen. And everyone will see us for who we really are."

Hermione nodded. "I'm in."


	4. The First Task

Chapter 4- The First Task

* * *

Hermione always loved the smell of various Potions bubbling around the classroom. On the rare occasions when Professor Snape declined to teach, he instructed them to pick a potion from their textbook and practise brewing it (or a pick new one if you were stupid enough to want to challenge yourself. Snape's words.). Hermione opted for the Wit-Sharpening Potion, something that she had only tried out by herself in Myrtle's bathroom. She smiled at the memory of second-year, but then it faded when she saw Harry brewing his Forgetfulness Potion. Maybe she would slip some of her Wit-Sharpening Potion into his pumpkin juice before the First Task so that he didn't die. Even that, she still doubted that he would win. Maybe he would pull it out of the bag in order to prove to her that he was serious about it, who knew?

She knew that Harry wouldn't try to approach her himself if he wanted to make things up to her. Not that he had to, he was allowed to make his own decisions. It was that Hermione didn't agree with them that was the issue. She couldn't sit back and watch him waste away the time before the First Task. Well, now it was slowly encroaching upon them and she didn't know whether he had been studying or not. Hermione had been tempted to ask Parvati or even Ginny about it, but realised that neither girl was really speaking to her of late. Hermione had expected that from Parvati, who had a small crush on Harry, but she thought Ginny would be more open to retaining her friendship. They had bonded somewhat during the World Cup, but Hermione never expected her to stop talking to her because of Harry. Or maybe it was because of Ron, Hermione didn't know.

It was about halfway through the lesson when Hermione noticed.

Harry and Ron were sat together.

And they were laughing.

Hermione frowned to herself. _When had_ that _happened?_

Neville, who had apparently learned how to sneak up on people, slid into the seat next to her. "They miss you."

Hermione whirled around, surprised by the intrusion. "What?"

"They miss you," Neville repeated, shrugging. "They patched up their differences a few days ago. They've been inseparable ever since."

"Good for them," Hermione muttered.

"It's not the same. In classes, in the common room, it's not the same without you three being together."

One part of Hermione was touched and the other scoffed at the remark.

"I see what you're trying to do, Neville. And it's not going to work."

"I thought that since Harry and Ron made up, that you would as well."

"Their _differences_ are separate to mine. Ron was a jealous prat and didn't believe Harry when he said that he didn't put his name into the Goblet of Fire. _I_ was simply trying to keep Harry alive when he wouldn't try himself. I'm tired of being the only one _trying_."

Neville pouted. "They want you to—."

"Aren't you tired of being the messenger? I _saw_ you do it for the boys and now you're doing it to me. The fact remains that neither of them have even tried to speaking to me. I haven't spoken to Ron since he stopped speaking to Harry. Neither of them actually care enough to try and talk to me themselves."

Neville considered this carefully before nodding. "I agree. I think that Harry is giving you space that you needed and, well I'm not sure what Ron is doing."

"Neville, they're brewing a first-year potion and they're _stuck_. Even you're successfully brewing a Girding Potion, which we've only been taught this year. They're failing, that's what they're doing."

Neville sighed. "Look, I'm not going to tell you what you should do, but they need you. You know that they need you."

"In what capacity do they need me, Neville? Homework help? Or do they need my friendship? If they did, they would have made the effort to regain it."

"Probably," Neville murmured before returning to his potion. Something had changed within the boy that had caused him to be able to actually brew potions without burning a gaping hole in the cauldron. Hermione was pleased that he had a modicum of competence in him.

Her mind drifted back to the Tournament, as it always did these days.

Cedric and Viktor would be fine. Their discussion sessions had proved as much. Their stratagems were both flawlessly conceptualised and would be successful pending that they didn't lose their cool when encountering the actual dragon.

Hermione was sure that they wouldn't. The Goblet of Fire would not have chosen them if they couldn't. Maybe that was the deal with Harry. Either the Goblet knew that he would pull it all off after his name had been sneaked into it by a meddler, or somebody had charmed it knowing that he couldn't survive it.

Either way, it was cruel.

Although Hermione strongly doubted that Dumbledore would have left holes in his spellcasting for somebody to break through the restrictions. She hated the binding magical contract that the Tournament was under. If they weren't applicable, Harry could have just refused to compete and that would have been that.

But then she would have probably not connected with Cedric or Viktor.

Hermione wouldn't have stopped speaking to Harry and wouldn't have realised that she needed so much more than what she had.

It was a tricky situation to be in, that much Hermione knew.

* * *

The day of the First Task came upon them all rather quickly.

Harry refused to eat, as he always did when he was nervous. Ron, Seamus and Dean were hounding him to take their toast and sausages. Ron was reluctant about it, but he offered.

Fleur sat oh so elegantly, poised as always. Her friends jabbered in rapid French around her, probably encouraging her and bestowing various compliments unto her.

Hermione sat with both Cedric and Viktor today, the latter crawling away from the vice grips of the Slytherin table with immediate relief.

Both boys were fairly confident, but not overly as Fleur seemed to be. Hermione wondered if she was, really.

"So you both remember exactly what you need to do?" Hermione sighed as they scoffed down their breakfast. Their morning habits were the polar opposites of Harry's, who repeatedly refused bacon.

"Our strategies are solid, Hermione," Viktor smiled fondly at the high-maintenance girl in front of him.

Hermione shook her head. "You also need to be confident about what you're doing. The judges score on skill and presentation as well as deducting points for injuries or wrongdoings."

Cedric smiled. "Hermione…you need to relax. You'll be safe in the stands while we take on the actual dragons. We know what we're doing. The Goblet chose us because of that."

Viktor nodded. "You've been more helpful than we can explain, but this is the point where you need to leave everything to us. We'll be fine."

Hermione resigned herself to the fact and Cedric smirked at her.

"I know that you love making sure everything goes right, Hermione. So do I. Mostly because of our deal."

Viktor frowned. "Deal?"

Hermione giggled and ran her tongue over her bottom lip. "Cedric and I made a deal before the last Hogsmeade trip. He wanted to kiss me and I said that he could if he beat you."

Cedric grinned. "I fully plan on fulfilling the terms of this deal. Sorry Vik."

Viktor's eyes clouded over with a plan brewing behind them. "How about we extend it? If I beat Ced, I get to kiss you instead."

Hermione blushed before smiling. "Alright. Boys, you've got yourselves a deal."

Cedric narrowed his eyes. "I knew you were going to do that, Krum."

Viktor patted his shoulder. "You'll just have to win then, won't you?"

"I guess I will."

* * *

Hermione sat in the stands, somehow acquiring the only free space next to Ron. Neville silently offered to switch places, but she refused. She wanted to see what Ron would do when confronted with the possibility of actually speaking to her.

"Good weather for the task," Ron murmured shortly before the announcement.

Hermione felt the rare November sun beat down on her as she considered how banal Ron's conversational attempt was. She gave him credit for talking though.

"It certainly is," Hermione replied, curious as to whether Ron would actually come up with something else. It was a direct analogy of her making all the effort in the friendship.

The air was strangely warm, possibly charmed, as the first competitor emerged from the tent.

It was Fleur, waving to the crowd as she twirled her wand. Naturally, the male contingency and the LGBT females were encapsulated in only her aura when she smiled at them all. She was quite far away from the spectators, but the radiance was too powerful.

Hermione just about stopped herself from rolling her eyes and Fleur stepped up to the mark.

The dragon roared at her, rather tamely compared to the ferocity of the other breeds in the competition. Fleur twisted her wand and slashed it upwards with an impressive flourish. The crowd cheered as the dragon blinked heavily before falling into some kind of manufactured slumber. Hermione was impressed with her work and made a note of learning that particular branch of sleeping spell.

Fleur kept her eyes on the crowd as she flitted around the rocks, performing somewhat showily as she leapt onto a diagonal rock and off it again, swiping the Golden Egg from its location. She held it high in the air and cheered, checking that the dragon was still asleep. Not wasting anymore time, Fleur vaulted over the rocks, catching one slightly before racing back to the line. Hermione noticed that she had a gash on her leg, blood trickling down to her ankle.

Hermione couldn't help but smirk at the realisation that Fleur would have had points deducted from what would have been a flawless performance that only took a minute or two.

Cedric was next and Hermione's breath got caught in her throat. She willed him to do well, but she knew that he would anyway.

Cedric got a predictably loud roar from the crowd as the majority favourite to win. The crowd was mainly made up of Hogwarts students and all three houses sans Gryffindor were rooting for Cedric. Plus, the Beauxbatons girls (and some of the boys) made it very clear that they liked him. He smiled back at everyone, catching Hermione's eye for perhaps longer than he should have.

From the moment he was allowed to, Cedric was animated as the dragon shot flames at him. He deflected them easily and began working on his Transfiguration spell. Turning a rock into a dog was more advanced than he could have hoped for, but it would win him more points if it paid off.

After a few seconds, the dog yapped loudly and the Swedish Short-Snout growled angrily at it. Cedric readied his Disillusionment Charm and it took effect. The dragon could no longer see him. People who didn't know the strategy (or didn't glean it from his major disappearance) frowned and chattered quietly to the person next to them.

Cedric cursed as the dragon lunged in front of him and was glad that nobody knew where he was. He snatched the Egg from the nest, a momentary image of Hermione's puckered lips flashing into his head.

Cedric slipped out of the dragon's reach and reversed the charm, showing himself holding the Egg proudly. Hermione cheered raucously and clapped her hand. Cedric thought about pointing to her like in a Muggle movie he saw, but decided against it. They weren't public with their…whatever it was yet and he didn't want to ruin things.

As the judges deliberated, Hermione noticed Ron giving her a strange look.

"What is it, Ronald?"

"Nothing," the other boy muttered back and went silent, his ears reddened.

Hermione tutted quietly and waited until the next competitor emerged from the tent.

It was Harry, who looked shaky and nervous. It would have been a massive change from Cedric's confident demeanour if Harry wasn't the underdog. It was to be expected that he would be nervous, being a mere fourth year unlike the others. Ron, Ginny, Fred, George, Neville, Dean and Seamus started cheering loudly for him and Hermione didn't join in. She settled for clapping encouragingly, though. She wasn't completely heartless.

Harry came to life after summoning his Firebolt and found himself diverted out of the grounds as the dragon broke off its chain. Hermione's stomach lurched.

"It shouldn't have done that," she whispered to herself. "The chain should _not_ have snapped."

"Oh, so you care now?" Ron retorted petulantly.

Hermione sighed. "I've never stopped caring about the two of you, actually. This isn't the time for this discussion, anyway."

Hermione made a note to not vocalise her thoughts anymore, her whole body filling with worry for her…former friend.

Soon, Harry swept back into the stadium, the dragon nowhere in sight. He used his Quidditch talents and dove down onto the ground, collecting the Egg in both of his hands.

Everyone cheered for him, including Hermione.

As Madam Pomfrey treated a shoulder wound and the judges deliberated on the scores, Viktor emerged from the Champion's Tent.

This time, everybody from every school cheered. An international celebrity was in front of them, performing in a Tournament held at _their_ school. House prejudices and school prejudices were put aside as the one universally revered Champion took his place.

As they had discussed, Viktor shot a Conjunctivitis Curse into the Chinese Fireball's eyes, making it roar loudly.

Viktor smiled at the successful casting. On a whim, he levitated one of the rocks, throwing it on the dragon's other side. He knew the eggs were not to be summoned, so he used his athleticism to sneak forward and whisk the Egg away from the nest and into his arms. He levitated another rock and repeated his distraction method. The dragon was facing the other way and did not even recognise that he took the Egg as it chased after the rock.

Viktor crossed the line and burst into the tent as everybody cheered, most shocked that he did not use his broomstick for a comfortable strategy.

Hermione cheered again, earning another dark look from Ron, which she promptly ignored.

* * *

Afterwards, Hermione made her way to the common grounds where everybody was celebrating as Rita Skeeter made the rounds of the four wizards competing. Fleur was explaining her methods while the bilingual Olympe Maxime was translating for her. Rita looked bored, as though she wanted to move onto the others already.

Cedric and Viktor spotted her, as did Harry. The former two got to her first already. She smirked.

"So they announced the scores to us privately," Viktor explained, a hint of a smile on his face.

"And?" Hermione wasn't asking because of the deal, but because she was curious.

"Well, Harry came in fourth. Apparently one of the judges didn't like how he exited the stadium, but gave him benefit points because the dragon got loose," Cedric explained.

"Fleur came third," continued Viktor, "because the gash on her leg was caused by over exaggerated performance, apparently."

"Okay, well I predicted that," Hermione nodded. "Now who won?"

"Both of us," the boys chorused.

"We tied," Viktor added. "we got twenty-nine of thirty points. My deduction was for my improvisation. They said it was a good plan, but I hadn't thought of it earlier."

Hermione's eyes darkened. "You didn't know what the terrain would be like earlier. That's unfair. It was probably Dumbledore."

Cedric nodded. "My point was for the Disillusionment Charm. It was too sneaky, apparently."

Hermione gaped. "There wasn't a rule against sneakiness. Dumbledore," she sighed.

Viktor shuffled. "So, about the deal."

"I guess it's nullified," Hermione smirked, knowing it would irk them.

Cedric pouted. "Or…we should add a tiebreaker clause. We both get to kiss you."

Hermione smiled as Viktor agreed.

She looked to Cedric. "Claim your prize, Mr. Diggory."

Cedric looked around before leaning in and kissing her mouth, lips twisting in all sorts of ways. His hand met the back of her head and pulled her in as Viktor watched, the sight before him very pleasing.

Cedric and Hermione separated not long after, everybody staring at them interestedly. Hermione noticed this and looked to Viktor.

"You ready?"

"Let's give them something to gossip about," Viktor grinned and roped her in for a kiss. It was much like Cedric's, short but passionate.

Hermione chuckled lightly as they parted, pleased by their kissing skills.

Cedric had an idea. He turned to Viktor and smirked, the other boy catching on.

At the last second, Hermione understood.

Cedric turned his body towards Viktor and pressed his lips against the Durmstrang boy's own. Viktor responded actively to it and cradled Cedric's face in his hands. Hermione smirked at the people staring at her with her arms folded.

The boys broke away and reached out for her hands. She took theirs and noticed that they were holding each other's.

Cedric laughed to himself. "Well, that was fun."


	5. The Rumour Mill

Chapter 5- The Rumour Mill

* * *

Hermione knew what it was like to have everybody looking at her as she walked by. The power of one hundred gazes was no stranger to her, but it was usually because of her association with "the famous Harry Potter" rather than something that she had done. Her intelligence only brought disdain and petty envy, but the way she felt right now? It was more than that…it was people looking at her (still jealously) for something that had been _her_ decision. Not everybody agreed with it, but it was done and she did not regret a single thing about it.

She just had willingly entered herself into a polyamorous relationship with two of the most attractive boys in the castle at that moment.

The fact that it happened to be while both of them were currently competing in the most dangerous scholastic event in the wizarding world was an extra little facet of information that had everybody stirring. Not only did the 1994 Tournament feature a quartet of champions, the only known person to survive a Killing Curse and a champion who caught the Snitch in a Quidditch World Cup final, but it also included two champions who were dating each other and the former best friend of one of the other champions.

Hermione thought that that was pretty much the definition of unprecedented. She had contributed to possible wizarding history. Depending on which of them won, and she rather thought that one of them would. Their performances in the First Task had been highly skilled and they had only lost two points between them. Hermione figured that Dumbledore probably would have deducted more if he could have gotten away with it. She had reluctantly predicted that Harry would have come first, his youth and inexperience partly to blame there. Although she reckoned that the person who put Harry's name into the Goblet probably did _something_ to set the dragon free, upsetting his strategy. She was proud of him for mastering the Summoning Charm, though.

Maybe it was time to reconnect.

There would have to be conditions, though.

One being their homework levels. Both Harry and Ron were good students. It was cliché, but they refused to apply themselves. They thought work was too banal when they could be Flying or playing Exploding Snap or something. But she needed them to try on their own. She would help, that was what friends did, but not overly so as she had done in the past. No copying would be tolerated, either. Copying encouraged laziness.

The second being Harry's commitment to future tasks. The golden Egg collected meant something to the Second Task and she was already working with Cedric and Viktor to find a solution. They had vowed not to open it ever again after that ear-splitting, earth-rending screech that had erupted from the metal after they had done it together. The sound was amplified, doubled in volume and had been painful to hear. She would have to make sure that Harry was in it to win. Even though that would cause a conflict of interest between Harry and her… _boyfriends_ (oh how weird that was to even think about) she would work through it, because she cared about them all.

She figured that Ron was over his jealousy, at least enough to patch things up with his best friend. Though aside from his mutterings during the First Task, he hadn't even so much as _looked_ at her. Maybe he got a dismissive vibe from her. She certainly wore it sometimes.

By the time that Hermione reached the library, her usual spot, people were no longer looking at her. Madam Pince had gave her a smirk, but nobody else was even around. It was lunchtime, after all. The Great Hall was booming with excitement over the First Task and, more importantly, the triad that had formed during the aftermath.

She still wasn't entirely sure how she felt about the whole thing. Of course she cared about the two boys… _her_ two boys, but it was a new experience for all of them and it would take time to adjust to. Plus, the attention wasn't really her thing. Hermione appreciated the curiosity and understood it, but being discussed on a schoolwide level was something she did not desire. It was a consequence of her feelings, though. Feelings that she completely understood. She liked Cedric and she liked Viktor. And they liked each other. It was simple enough.

"Granger, I can _hear_ you thinking," Cedric complained as he strolled into their section of the library, Viktor in tow.

Hermione blushed. "I have a lot to think about."

Cedric nodded appreciatively. "How about some more? The Great Hall is _obviously_ stirring about our revelation after the Task. Even McGonagall was whispering about us. We're the talk of the castle."

Viktor smiled. "On the bright side, we have Durmstrang's full support. Obviously when it comes to the Tournament, I'm their victor."

Cedric and Hermione giggled at the pun as Viktor continued.

"They promised to keep their ears open at the Slytherin table and defend us wherever applicable."

"I appreciate that," Hermione said.

Cedric bit his lip. "I'm not sure the rumours I've gleaned are entirely ameliorative. If you both want to hear them, I can talk, but I understand if not. It's a complex thing we've started and not everybody understands the nuances involved."

Viktor hummed. "I would like to know what the opinions are."

"Me too," Hermione agreed.

Cedric cleared his throat. "Okay, well, the Hufflepuff majority are okay. Loyal until the end, right? Ravenclaw know enough about the concept, but the personal feelings aren't so welcoming. Apparently, Marietta Edgecombe kicked up a storm in the common room, calling us all sorts of names."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "That was to be expected. And Cho?"

Cedric smirked. "She disapproves, of course. Though it's mostly the side that includes Viktor and I. A lot of the castle frowns upon our desires to be together, Vik."

Viktor shrugged. "Let them frown. Their frowns balance our smiles."

Hermione grinned at that. "The Gryffindor table is very angry at me, I think. Though I can't tell whether that's a consequence of me not being friends with Harry and Ron, or us. Parvati Patil was whispering about it when she thought I was asleep. _Apparently_ , I wanted to snog the future winner of the Triwizard Tournament, but I couldn't decide who was going to win out of the two of you so I fed you Amortentia and chose you both until one of you eventually won. Then I was going to dump the other one and marry them under consecutive Love Potions."

Viktor huffed. "Parvati is a schmuck."

Cedric chuckled. "Roger Davies thinks that we're starting a Champions and Friends orgy club. Nobody bothered correcting him."

"Slytherin are pejorative, as expected," Viktor explained. "That Malfoy kid started talking about Hermione in ways I couldn't forgive so one of my friends agreed to hex him."

Hermione smirked. "That's Draco Malfoy for you. Remind me to send your friend some chocolates for his efforts."

"That horrible Pansy girl had a theory that was very amusing. Supposedly, Cedric and I are trying to stop Harry from winning, so we're taking everything special to him to psyche him out. First we're seducing Hermione and then we're going to drown Ronald in the Black Lake. Then something about his owl and the Whomping Willow in the grounds."

"Poor Hedwig," Hermione murmured before giggling. "We can overcome this, right?"

"The talk?" Cedric clarified. "Of course we can. Look, the two of you make me very happy. I want to be with you both and if I have to be the subject of slander and lies, so be it. I'm not about to start letting the opinions of my peers get in the way of my happiness."

Viktor nodded. "He's right, Hermione. We haven't exactly addressed this, but I am only here until the end of the year. After that, who knows where we'll be, but while we're all in the same place, I want us all to be together. So what if people don't understand the way we choose to feel about people, it's their life, their confusion. What about you, Hermione?"

She smiled. "I'm never been very well-liked here at Hogwarts for myriad reasons and if this is going to increase that consensus, then so be it. Despite the uniqueness of this experience, you two make me happy and I'll take all of the smiles I can get, no matter what everybody else thinks. You both make me feel special and beautiful and I'm glad this can work. The three of us, together. We're all in."

"We're all in," Cedric and Viktor chorused.

* * *

Hermione sat against her favourite tree, despite the bitter air that nipped at her. Cedric and Viktor were otherwise occupied, so she took the chance to escape from the castle and reunite herself with aspects of the past. The tree, in clear view of Hagrid's Hut, was where she came when Harry and Ron didn't like her and nobody else did either. She studied, wrote letters, read for entertainment and took in everything that had happened around her. Learning of her magic was a great shock to her, feeling ordinary throughout her entire life, and she had needed time to come to terms with the rest of her life. The peace the grounds gave her allowed her to do just that without anybody interrupting.

Now though, the odd person stared at her, not bothering to talk as they passed, probably convinced that their own interpretation of events was correct without clarification.

Hermione was caught up in the nostalgia as a low, familiar voice rumbled through the cold air.

"Hermione?"

"Hagrid," she breathed.

"What are you doing out here? It's bitterly cold."

Hermione shrugged, standing up. "I like to come out here and just think sometimes."

"You want to talk about it? Come inside, I'll make us some tea."

Hermione was going to decline, but something inside her told her to agree to the invitation and she found herself inside Hagrid's Hut, a place she hadn't been since before Halloween.

"I admire your strength, Hermione. Always have."

Hermione frowned and Hagrid pressed on.

"Not everybody has what it takes to embrace polyamory. Some people think they're weird for feeling things for multiple people and hide away, only picking one or denying it altogether. What you three are doing is brave and admirable."

She smiled. "Wow, thanks Hagrid."

"If I'm honest, though, I rather expected this to happen with you, Harry and Ron, given how close you three were."

And there it was. Hermione took in his words and the very thought amused her more than she was willing to admit.

"I don't feel that way about them. They're…they were…more like siblings, you know? And Harry and Ron are completely inflexible in their sexualities. For now, at least. I think that none of us had many friends growing up. Harry was sheltered and underappreciated, Ron was overshadowed by the triumphs of his brothers and Ginny and I was not somebody who people wanted to get to know. It brought us together, however much we wanted it to."

"And Cedric and Krum are…they're respecting you, right?"

Hermione blushed and nodded. She had a feeling she knew what Hagrid was talking about, but she didn't want to say it. She wasn't even nearly ready for anything intimate and she knew that Cedric and Viktor would respect that decision and would not rush her. That didn't mean that she didn't give them permission to explore each other, though. She knew that they were older and would probably want to relieve some stress and she gave a green light to them for exactly that. "They are. They're wonderful."

"Diggory's a good kid. Krum seems like one too. Though I don't think you'd pick them if they weren't. You're smarter than that."

Hermione swallowed heavily. "I thought you'd be pushing for me to mend fences with the boys."

Hagrid waved a giant hand in front of him. "That's your choice. While I do love seeing you three causing trouble together, things can take time. I think you'll come together when push comes to shove, though. There's a genuine friendship between you all and not something that can go away easily. Now I've heard Harry's side of things, but what about yours?"

Hermione smiled widely. Hagrid had been the only person other than Cedric and Viktor who had actually asked her why she stopped speaking to them. She explained her story frankly and quickly, happy that Hagrid hadn't disputed anything she said.

"That pretty much covers it."

"Harry's version was a little different, but that's to be expected. He doesn't blame you, though. He's trying harder to save himself. Merlin knows he needed a good kick up the backside. I do understand your position of not wanting to be the one to make amends, though. If you want I can tell them that you're in a place where you can forgive them? That's if you are, of course."

Hermione bit her lip then carefully nodded. "I do miss them. And despite everything, they were my first proper friends. That's not something I can tear down easily. Me and Ron had our falling out last year and Harry was in the middle. Now there's no middle ground. But yes, I would appreciate you talking to them. But I want them to be genuine."

Hagrid nodded. "I suppose that's all you need from them."

Hermione agreed. With two compassionate boyfriends and her best friends on track to be her best friends again, Hermione realised that her life was shaping up, although she had forgotten about one thing…

* * *

"Miss Granger, Mr. Diggory and Mr. Krum. May I trouble you three for an interview?"

Rita Skeeter had found them sitting together in the Great Hall and intruded upon them during their time together. Viktor clenched his jaw and turned a violent shade of angry red. Cedric huffed and ran a hand through his curls. Hermione glared dangerously at the woman and shook her head.

"We won't be speaking to you, Skeeter, not about this."

Rita tutted. "Well, it's either you speak to me about it, or I make something up. I know Miss Parkinson was delighted to shed some light on the recent…uh…developments between this trio."

Viktor growled. "You know that more people actually believe the ramblings of _The Quibbler_ than your column? Even Durmstrang knows you're full of lies and machinations."

Rita smirked evilly. "It's a pity that you haven't talked about this already. My article will be the first words on the matter. How will the wizarding world react to Harry Potter's former best friend shacking up with his competitors?"

Cedric glared. "Our relationship has nothing to do with you or the wizarding world. As long as we know the truth, it won't matter either way."

"Spoken like a true Diggory. Tell me, Cedric, does your father know about your new situation?"

Hermione banged the table. "Oh, will you just shut up?"

That got everybody's attention as heads turned towards them. Well, the ones that weren't already looking at the triad.

"I'm not even suppose what right you have to be here but I don't think there's a single person in this room who wants you here! We're _trying_ to eat a meal here and you keep _bugging_ us for information about our private lives. You're covering the Tournament, correct? This is not the Tournament! Go and talk to Fleur or Harry about how they're doing with the Second Task, but don't come over to us and demand information about our relationship."

"You have some audacity, girl."

"And _you_ need to learn your place. I know a thing or two about you, Skeeter, and it could be terribly damaging for your career if it got out. I think you know what it is. So if you don't leave us the _hell_ alone, I might rethink my moral code and ruin your life. Are we clear?"

Rita nodded feebly.

"Good. Now scuttle away, Rita. Let's hope you think of a more interesting headline for tomorrow's _Daily Prophet_."

Rita smirked, thinking of something. "Fine. But I'm about to make your life miserable, Granger. When I'm through with the three of you, you'll wish you kept quiet. Your frowns will balance my smile. Bye now."

Cedric, Hermione and Viktor just stared at each other, recognising the dialogue from before in the library.

"How the hell?"

Hermione sighed. "She's an unregistered Animagus. She takes a beetle form."

Cedric nodded. "Makes sense. We'll need to be careful."

Viktor agreed. "Just watch what you say to people. We can charm the areas to block out unwanted visitors."

Hermione nodded. "This is about to get very difficult. But I'm definitely ready for what's about to happen. Even if wants to make my life a misery, I won't let her."

Cedric and Viktor smiled at each other, each with the same thought.

 _That's our girl._


	6. Working It Out

Chapter 6- Working It Out

* * *

"So how _did_ you know that Rita Skeeter was an unregistered Animagus, anyway?" Cedric enquired as he, Hermione and Viktor sat in their corner of the library, spelled by Madam Pince to keep people out as a gesture of her support. She had always liked Hermione and was going to subtly do everything she could to maintain the girl's happiness. Ever since Hermione was eleven and exploring the library on her second day in the castle, they had bonded somewhat over their affinity for literature.

Hermione hummed. "Well, I noticed that something was odd in the common room just before my argument with Harry. I felt something on me on and wiped it off. I found it odd because Hogwarts doesn't accommodate beetles. Helga Hufflepuff was terrified of them and made sure they couldn't survive in the castle. So that got me wondering about it.

" _The Daily Prophet_ article about support for Harry in the Tournament mentioned something taken verbatim from one of our conversations earlier in the week. I just put two and two together, really." She shrugged, like it was no big deal. It hadn't been, in the moment.

Viktor shook his head. "You're really something else."

"I agree," Cedric said. "I don't think anybody else would have even _thought_ about putting two and two together and coming up with unregistered Animagus."

"I've learned to think outside the box. I enjoy riddles."

Cedric smirked. "I definitely do not. Well, at least that one that's lying inside the Golden Egg. We were told that the Egg holds the clue to how to prepare for the Second Task, but we can't seem to break it. Every time we open it, it just screams at us. It's rather annoying after a while."

Viktor nodded. "It certainly is. I keep trying to think of what we're missing, but nothing's coming to me. It's like I'm almost there, but I'm just missing the point. This is one riddle that will prove a challenge to the great Hermione Granger."

Hermione blushed, only just coming around to the compliments that were being bestowed upon her like drops of rain. "Alright. Let's write down what we know about the Egg. Everything you can think of, no matter how trivial it might seem. In a riddle, everything is important and will help you to reach the solution."

Cedric took out a spare piece of parchment and his quill and Viktor did the same. "Okay, well it's gold."

"It shrieks whenever we try to open it," Viktor added, staring at the Egg that Cedric had brought with him.

Hermione made a note of both of the facets of information and stared hard at the Egg. "This is created to be challenging, so it'll probably be something you would never expect."

Viktor chuckled. "I never really expected to hear a banshee wailing at me when I opened the Egg, but yeah okay, let's go with that."

Hermione smiled and held the Egg in her hands. Knocking on it, she hummed. "It feels hollow. I know you said there wasn't a lot in it, but something feels strange about it. Did they give you any clues?"

Cedric shook his head. "Just that it contains vital information about the next Task. If we don't figure this out and the Second Task approaches, we're going to be in big trouble."

Hermione eyed him. "Are you suggesting that I'm not going to be able to figure this out, Cedric? Because I'm Hermione Granger and I _will_ solve this puzzle. Maybe I should have been selected for this Tournament."

"Oh, you'd definitely win," Viktor replied coolly.

Hermione shrugged. "Have you thought about _where_ you're opening the Egg?"

Cedric frowned, not really understanding. "I mean, should I open it _outside_ or somewhere cold or in the bath or something?"

"I'm not saying that, I'm…hold on. You should try that. Opening it in water. I read something about different creatures and artefacts responding differently within different mediums. Maybe water allows it to function properly, whatever it is. If that fails, we could always try a solid glass box and encase it in there and see what happens."

Viktor gaped. "I think you just solved the clue."

Hermione preened. "Let's not jump ahead of anything. Try it, see if it works. Then we'll go from there. I mean right now, go and have baths."

Cedric and Viktor slid out of the bench and both pressed a hurried kiss to Hermione's cheek, Cedric carrying his Egg in one hand and holding Viktor's hand in the other. Hermione thought it was so adorable as she watched them leave. Madam Pince dispelled the enchantment surrounding her and handed her an enveloped letter.

"The owl tried to find you but you weren't in the Great Hall so someone carried it here for you."

Hermione went to say something, but it was lost in her throat. "Thank you, Madam Pince."

Hermione scanned the letter, addressed to " _Miss Hermione Granger, Gryffindor House, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry"._ Shrugging, she opened it and gasped a dark, murky gas puffed out of the envelope and wrapped itself around her. A flood of ice zipped through her veins and the skin of her arms began to burn, like she had left ice cubes on it for too long.

The burn intensified as she zipped through the hallways to the Hospital Wing, glad that the portrait shortcut she liked to use was functioning on this particular occasion.

"Miss Granger?" Madam Pomfrey gasped as Hermione slipped inside the door, showing her arms to the Healer.

"Please tell me you can stop this!" Hermione cried, the pain getting to her.

Madam Pomfrey gasped. "Oh, my dear, what happened to you?"

"I opened a letter and there was this gas that just…I don't know exactly but it really hurts!"

"Drink this, dear. You'll pass out for a short time, but whatever is going on here will be completely cleared up. Don't worry, Miss Granger, you'll be perfectly fine."

Hermione nodded, ingesting the foul-smelling liquid that Madam Pomfrey had ushered under her nose. The potion shot down her throat, making her insides explode with light. Her head spun and she lost control of her consciousness, collapsing onto a nearby hospital bed. Her eyes became weak and she fell into the abyss of black that welcomed her.

* * *

When Hermione awoke, she could barely make out the two figures that loomed over her. Initially, she thought that Cedric and Viktor had found her and were tending to her. As her eyesight improved, she realised that her boyfriends were nowhere to be found.

"You're awake," a distinctly familiar voice rang through the empty Hospital Wing.

She frowned, not expecting that. "Harry?"

"And Ron," Harry said softly. "McGonagall told us that you were here and that we should come and see you. I'm not sure she knew everything that had been going on with us recently."

Ron smiled. "We just wanted to make sure that you were alright. Diggory and Krum were here before us, in case you thought they weren't. They said that they'd come back later on."

Hermione sat upright in the bed, sighing at the sting in her arms. "How long have you both been here?"

"Long enough that Ron's stomach is crying out for help," Harry supplied with a small laugh. Hermione cracked a smile, too. "Look, Hermione, we…we really miss having you around. And not just for homework help. We're actually maintaining the grades you basically got for us."

Ron nodded. "My Potions is even going _up_."

Hermione smirked. "So you're doing _better_ without my help? Maybe because you realise that you actually understand more of the work than you think you do, given that you no longer have an academic safety net."

Ron picked imaginary lint from his knee. "We're sorry, we really are. We never meant for you to feel like you were just around to help with homework."

Hermione tilted her head. "I'd be lying if I said I didn't miss the both of you."

Harry smirked. "It seems that you have a lot to tell us." Hermione groaned.

"You seriously want to talk about boys?"

Ron shrugged. "It's not my _favourite_ topic, but it'll be a nice change of pace from Harry's perpetual Cho Chang angst."

Hermione smiled. "You'd better brush up on your knowledge about snow. Apparently, it's all she talks about. If you want to impress her, Harry, just talk about snowfall."

"Noted," Harry said, frowning, "thanks for the tip, I think? How are your arms?"

Hermione swallowed heavily. "Sore. I'm not sure who sent that letter or what was even in it, but whatever it was, it was clearly designed to hurt me specifically. Oh my God."

Ron laughed. "I've missed pretending to understand when Hermione figures something out," he said and Harry nodded along.

"I think I do understand, this time, though. You think Rita Skeeter did this, don't you?"

Hermione sighed. "I think it's plausible and probable. I mean, who else would do something like that? Her reputation was put into question by a fourteen year old girl, she seems like the type to take revenge. The whole wizarding world reads her bogus articles. If word got out that she might not be as legitimate as she seems, everything would crumble around her. The more I think about it, the more sense it makes."

Ron chuckled. "If you say so, Hermione."

"We'll help you take her down," Harry asserted, "that is…if you'll have us back."

Ron nodded. "Even if I'm only agreeing because you're dating my sporting hero."

Hermione scowled at him playfully. "I've missed you both, I really have. But things can't go back to how they were."

"We understand," Ron replied, "a more equal friendship from now on. You can even ask things of us when you need them. No more homework help."

"Well, I can still give you tips and proofread things."

Ron shook his head. "I'm kinda starting to enjoy writing Charms essays. Oh god, I'm turning into you."

Hermione laughed. She actually had missed them quite a bit, she realised. The three of them had been so close and had been on such a journey together that it would have been difficult for them not to be friends for much longer. Reconciliation was natural once amends were made. That wasn't to say that Hermione was going to tolerate their previous behaviour. No, absolutely not. Changes would be made in due time and everything would go back to normal. She would split her time between classes, friends and boyfriends. Oh, how that plural still sounded strange. Hermione partly wished that she still had the Time Turner so that she could dictate how her time was sectioned off.

Harry nudged him. "Wouldn't _that_ be a blessing? Maybe you would learn correct hygiene."

Ron scoffed. "Maybe _you_ would learn to fix your glasses every once in a while!"

Hermione sighed, seeing the tape that had been plastered over the bridge of the spectacles. Her arm ached as she grasped her wand from the nearby table. "As a gesture of goodwill, _Occulus Reparo_."

The three shared smiles with each other, finally getting the feeling that things would return to normal, even if it hadn't quite happened yet.

* * *

Peering through a space in the door, Cedric and Viktor grinned at each other, seeing the genuine smile on Hermione's face now that she had been reunited with her best friends. Despite how much the two Champions cared about her, Harry and Ron would always be special to her, no matter what she said about them. Hermione would rant and rave about their laziness and carelessness, but she still loved them like siblings.

"So how are we going to destroy Skeeter for what she's done?" Cedric smirked.

Viktor grunted. "Any way we can. I feel like Hermione already has an idea, though. You know what she's like, always thinking of every possible outcome."

Cedric sighed. "Indeed. I'm a lot like that, too. I was thinking about something earlier, in fact. I got the feeling that Hermione is the sole focus of our affections. I wanted to let you know that I care deeply about you, as well."

Viktor nodded. "I was thinking the same. You're very special, Cedric. We should take some time to ourselves sometime soon. I want to show you that this truly is a polyamory, not just the two of us doting on Hermione."

Cedric kissed his cheek firmly. "Thank you, Vik. I think you're wonderful and I don't want you to lose sight of that during the Tournament. We may be competing, but we're united by our feelings for each other."

Viktor chuckled. "Of course. And by the beautiful girl in that room. We're all joined together and nothing or nobody can stop us, no matter what they try and do to us. Stand together, always."

Cedric slipped his hand into Viktor's, thumb stroking the rough skin rhythmically. "Always."


	7. The Way It Is

Chapter 7- The Way It Is

* * *

Hermione quite enjoyed life with Harry and Ron back in it.

She had explained to Ron that her fallout with Harry hadn't directly affected him, but more by association. It had included him as well, but not directly. Ron had understood and also had felt that he was deserving of some of the accusations Hermione had dished out to Harry. Ron was quite amused that she had shouted at him in front of the entire common room, something that Hermione didn't tend to do a lot of. Confrontation wasn't really her thing unless one of her friends needed defending, as her punching Malfoy had proven. And that was for Buckbeak, who wasn't even human. That was Hermione's defence of animals coming into play, which Ron had missed about her.

With the Second Task fast approaching, Hermione had been waiting until Cedric or Viktor solved the puzzle to progress with tactics. From what she had gleaned from the Great Hall, Fleur was still trying to work her puzzle out, too.

Hermione had an issue that she brought up with Cedric while Viktor sat with his Durmstrang friends.

"You know the puzzle in the Egg? What do we do about it?"

Cedric smiled. "Figure it out. I thought that was simple to comprehend, especially for a witch of your intellect."

Hermione groaned at the sarcasm. "No, I mean, now that I'm friends with Harry again. You and Viktor are going to figure it out together, but do I tell Harry what it all means? It would be giving him an unfair advantage due to my association with the two of you."

Cedric sighed, having thought about that the previous night. "I don't know. Initially, before he made amends, or at least took a step towards doing so, I would have blanked him about it. He didn't tell me about the dragons, leaving me unaware. Viktor and Fleur both knew. So I was going to keep him in the dark if I'm honest. I know, Hufflepuffs are supposed to be loyal, but I couldn't look past what he had done and what I was expected to do in return.

"Decorum would've led to me helping him anyway, but if you hadn't have stepped in and helped with the dragons, I wouldn't have been prepared. The First Task was supposed to have been a test of spontaneous thinking, but the staff quickly realised we all knew about the dragons before the Task started so they changed it. I would have had an unfair disadvantage over them."

"I understand," Hermione nodded, "and I'm just glad you weren't in that situation. I guess things were supposed to play out like that all along. Harry and I are patching things up, but it's ultimately yours and Viktor's decision. I'm not a competitor, I'm an informal advisor. But you should do what feels right in your gut. You're the type of person that would help someone because you know how awful it felt to be the only one left out of it. You're not a bad person, Ced, and I think you know what you need to do, even now."

Cedric conceded that. "The Tournament was supposed to be about forging new connections and discovering the person you truly are and things like that, so maybe this is also a test of my character. I…I'll have a think about it. I think I know what I should do, but I'll talk with Viktor about it and see what he thinks I should do. You're the best at giving advice, you know that?"

Hermione shrugged. "When you spend enough time observing, you understand things about people and gain the skill to see who they are. I know who you are and what you know you're going to do. I merely led you to see that."

Cedric held her tightly against him. "Oh, what would I be without you?"

"Dragon fodder," Hermione retorted with a smile, nudging him. Viktor caught their eye from across the room and grinned at them both. It was true what Hermione thought; she really did have a good thing going on.

* * *

Hermione smiled at her boyfriends as they approached her, both holding their eggs looking wary.

"We have a problem," Cedric motioned with his spare arm to Viktor.

"What's Viktor done?"

Cedric shook his head. "No, not him. I was going to use the Prefect's Bathroom you know, for privacy and focus reasons, but it turns out that they've increased the difficulty of anyone entering who isn't a Prefect. There's a sensor stationed outside the door and Viktor won't be able to pass it because it'll see him. It's like Professor Moody's other eye or something."

Viktor nodded. "We thought you might have an idea about how to get me inside."

Hermione pondered this, not able to come up with anything on the spot as she sometimes did. "Hmm, I don't know. We could try some sort of disabler for the sensor, a spell maybe? A temporary enchantment?"

Hermione heard a voice behind her.

"Sorry," Harry interjected, "I wasn't eavesdropping or anything, but I sort of heard your dilemma and I have a solution."

Hermione instantly knew. "That thought didn't even enter my mind."

"What?"

Harry smirked. "I inherited something from my father that I got three years ago that might help you." Harry presented them with the Invisibility Cloak, smiling warmly.

"Is that what I think it is? I thought that was just a rumour!" Cedric gasped, having heard the rumours about Harry Potter's Cloak of Invisibility, but not quite believing them. He had good reason, though. Cloaks like that weren't exactly your common magical item. It wasn't like you could find them next to the Sneakoscopes on the shelves in Diagon Alley. How James Potter had stumbled across that was not of great importance, but would leave Cedric pondering it for quite a while. He reckoned that even Hermione didn't knew. Maybe Harry didn't.

"You have a Cloak of Invisibility?" Viktor echoed.

Harry smiled. "Yep. You can use it tonight, if you want. I figured that a Disillusionment Charm would leave magical traces around the area the sensor is supposed to work, but the Cloak should completely conceal you from its field of activity."

Hermione chuckled. "You've never sounded more like me in your life, Harry."

Harry sighed. "Well, you were right all that time ago, Hermione. I wasn't taking things seriously concerning the Tournament. I thought that if I waited long enough, something would happen to exempt me from it and save me the trouble of competing. I know I'm not going to win the thing, I'll probably come dead last by a landslide, but I have to at least try, don't I? Thank you, Hermione. And I'm going to put lots of effort into the Second Task. I haven't quite figured out the Egg, but I'll get there."

Cedric glanced at Hermione and smiled. "Harry? Get your Egg and meet us back here. And bring some shorts."

Harry frowned. "I thought you were going to the Prefect's Bathroom now."

"We are," Viktor replied, eyes twinkling brightly.

"So, why am I tagging along? And why are you taking your Eggs?"

Cedric smirked. "The key to figuring out the Egg clue is potentially in the Bathroom. Why, what did you think was going to happen there?"

Harry turned a violent shade of red and his eyes widened comically. Hermione stifled a laugh and Viktor fought off a blush. "Oh, um…nothing in particular. But I'll be right back with my Egg. Thank you both for helping me."

Viktor smiled. "It's no problem. You're helping me in return."

Hermione realised then that things actually had changed with them. Harry was thinking more carefully about the Triwizard Tournament and taking steps to try and properly compete without dying. He was also becoming more considerate and aware of other people's feelings. A more even friendship was what she had wanted and that was what she was seeing. It was…

Refreshing.

"It's nothing, honestly. I'll be right back."

Harry jogged away, leaving the Cloak in Hermione's hands, as the three looked at each other.

"That was a welcome surprise," Cedric commented.

"Indeed," Viktor nodded, "and that Cloak must have come in handy a few times, right?"

Hermione pursed her lips. "I realise now that you have no idea about things that have happened at Hogwarts these past three years. It's been an eventful time, certainly. But my misadventures are for another time. I'll tell you both everything on a nice morning, sat in our corner of the library."

"That sounds lovely," Cedric said, kissing Hermione's head affectionately.

"Misadventures?" Viktor repeated, hesitating slightly.

Hermione exhaled. "Well it's nothing exactly _bad,_ it's just…frowned upon. I've broken a lot of school rules since first year. You'd be surprised at just how sneaky I can be."

Viktor laughed happily. "Oh, I can imagine. Using your intelligence for evil, Hermione?"

"Most definitely," she joked.

Cedric swallowed. "I'd like to be able to discern rumour from truth. I've heard a lot about what the three of you were up to but I was never sure what to believe. The Hufflepuffs are sort of indifferent towards you lot so they didn't really care for the specifics back then."

Hermione's eyes lighted. "I'll leave nothing out, I promise. Now, go solve your clue. Tell me if I was actually right. Then we'll start strategy tomorrow."

"Harry included?" Cedric asked.

Hermione nodded. "Yes. I just hope that Fleur knows what she's doing, because you three are going to nail this next Task, no matter what it is."

Harry approached, holding his Egg in both hands. "I'll be so glad when this is all over and I don't have to stare at this thing all day. Or hear that awful screech as it opens. What was that about? It sounded like a Mandrake."

The other three chuckled, Hermione sending the boys on their way. It was strange for her to see Cedric and Viktor happily conversing with Harry. Competition changed some people, but not those three. Ron seemed a little affected, even indirectly, but that was before he knew the facts. None of the Champions had been fazed by the rivalries the Tournament probably should have set in motion. It wasn't enough just to make them endure perilous Tasks, the Tournament had to make them bold and fierce enough to face each other as well.

For there was only one winner, after all, and that would probably be something to look forward to for Hermione if both of her boyfriends and her best friends weren't competing. Her loyalties would be tested, but she would handle that when it happened. Hermione figured that, unless Fleur won, she would be celebrating and commiserating either way. She had to make sure to balance them or else feelings may be hurt and that was the last thing that Hermione wanted.


	8. Articles And Announcements

Chapter 8- Articles And Announcements

* * *

Hermione knew that the three boys would come back from their meeting with some kind of news or information pertaining to the next stage of the Triwizard Tournament. It was basically stated when they were called away from lunch, leaving she and Ron to speculate about the reasons for calling them to a secret gathering.

"Maybe the Tournament's being cancelled or something?" Ron suggested while delving headfirst into his plate of chicken.

Hermione smiled. "I forgot how much you liked to eat. Hmm, maybe something's changed about the second task. I doubt they'd cancel the whole thing at this stage. It was risky to even think about putting it on in the first place. They're going the whole way. I'm scared for them."

"Who?" Ron smirked.

"All of them," Hermione shot back, blushing. "Maybe they've found a way for Harry to drop out!"

Ron swallowed his chicken and frowned. "He finished the first task, Hermione. He's in good form."

"But it's only going to get harder from here!"

"Are you saying he isn't up to it?"

Hermione sighed. "None of them are. I think they're stupid for signing up and I really hate the person who submitted Harry's name."

Hermione heard a chuckle from behind her.

"I'm glad you think so highly of your boyfriends, Hermione," Cedric said and Viktor hummed.

"Your belief is noted."

Ron interrupted him. "Everyone's staring and pointing."

Cedric frowned. "So? People have been doing that since the day of the First Task."

Harry coughed. "No, they're really staring. And whispering."

Hermione rolled her eyes and grabbed the nearest copy of the _Daily Prophet_ from Neville, who shrugged like he had let her take it. "It's probably about _this_. That vile dung beetle's article is in here and Merlin knows what she's written about us."

"Want me to read it?" Ron offered helpfully.

"Thank you, Ronald, but it's okay. Right, let's see…ah, we made the second page but we got quite a lot of the page to ourselves. And there's a picture of you two kissing, how lovely."

"Focus on the words, Hermione," Viktor prompted and she nodded and read the article aloud.

 _ **TRIWIZARD TRIO SHAKE UP A HURRICANE**_

 _Just when we thought that this year's Triwizard Tournament wasn't controversial enough with the dubious entry of twelve-year old Harry Potter—_

"I'm fourteen!" Harry groaned. "Sorry. I'll let you finish."

"… _the dubious entry of twelve-year old Harry Potter, it seems that the romantic lives of two of the most championed Champions have made a play for the public's attention. Together with Potter's rumoured girlfriend, Hermione Granger, both Hogwarts' Cedric Diggory and Quidditch sensation Viktor Krum have sparked a schoolwide (and nationwide) debacle with the insistence that they are all together as a trio. You heard me correctly, readers, they are all_ _ **together**_ _._

" _During my visit to the Tournament's base, I came across a few students who indignantly confirmed that this is nothing more than a stunt to claim the attention from The Boy Who Lived. Greatly-liked Slytherin student Pansy Parkinson had this to say about the whole thing—."_

"Okay, but do we want to hear this?" Cedric frowned. "It's not exactly going to be positive, is it?"

Viktor put an arm on his. "It might be wise to get a sense of what everyone is saying."

Cedric shrugged. "I suppose."

Hermione nodded before continuing.

" _The Granger girl has always been one for attention, so this doesn't surprise me. What surprises me is that Krum and Diggory are pretending to be into each other just so Granger can pretend that boys like her."_

Ron sighed deeply. "I think I've finally found an excuse to practise the Bat Bogey Hex."

Hermione shook her head. "I don't think it's a good idea to antagonise Pansy. If she's in Skeeter's back pocket, it might spark more unnecessary rumours. Do you want to open a cursed envelope next time, Ronald?"

"No," he answered, his mouth once again full to the brim with chicken.

"It's almost over," Hermione replied and read the last paragraph.

" _Should this all unravel over the duration of the Tournament, I guess we will find out whether Pansy has her facts straight or whether she simply wanted her name in a newspaper article. So I'll leave it up to you, readers. Is this a big publicity stunt or do we actually have a romance of champions on our hands?"_

Hermione silently passed the paper back to Neville and turned to her friends and boyfriends. "At least she found a way to insult Pansy in there too," she supplied.

Viktor grunted. "Something needs to be done about that woman."

Ron clapped Harry on the back. "Go on, mate. Do something to really get everyone's attention and make the next article solely about you."

"You'll be the most written about twelve-year old in _Daily Prophet_ history," Cedric smirked. Harry flicked a baked bean at him in disgust.

"You know, I don't know why she keeps writing that I'm twelve when the wizarding world knows how old I am. It just makes her look stupid."

"So don't correct her," Ron shrugged, "as long as you know the truth. Anyway, Hermione and I were about to ask you what that super-secret meeting was about."

Viktor chuckled. "Is this your way of asking us?"

Hermione nodded. "Anything we need to incorporate into our strategies?"

Harry shook his head. "Not exactly. McGonagall presented it like another task, but it's not _really_ a task. I'm bad at this. Cedric?"

"Basically, on Christmas Night, there's going to be a Yule Ball."

Hermione tilted her head curiously. She hadn't read anything about any Yule Ball. "Is that what I think it is?"

Viktor nodded. "Exactly what you think it is. It's an opportunity for the champions and the rest of the schools to relax a little before the Second Task takes place. It's a formalwear dance with live entertainment and food provided."

"Food?" Ron piped up. "As in a feast?"

Harry grinned. "Yes, Ron. Exactly like a feast. McGonagall was advising us to bring dates and learn how to dance. The four champions each have to dance in front of everyone. A waltz, I think. What twelve-year old boy knows how to waltz?"

The five laughed in harmony, enjoying the sliver of levity they had been afforded despite the tumultuous events of the recent past and the defamatory article in the _Prophet._ Hermione knew that this was a rare moment of bliss before everything started up again and she had more things to worry about, like the safety of her boyfriends and best friend in the upcoming tasks.

But, for now, she decided that she would focus on finding a nice dress for the Yule Ball. She obviously didn't have to worry about a date. She had two who were both Champions. Alternatively, as a little project, she would work on finding Harry and Ron dates. She figured that girls would be lining up to dance with a Champion, but Ron's slightly standoffish attitude left him a little excluded, which Hermione was prepared to remedy. She would scout out potential targets and get back to him if he hadn't already found one himself.

Nonetheless, it would be a fun way to end Christmas and, hopefully, it would go by without any unnecessary drama.

* * *

"I had a thought," Hermione said to Cedric and Viktor as they lounged about in their usual sector of the library, this time cornered off by Madam Pince who was allowing them some downtime to strategise.

Irma was fully aware that they were not developing tactics, but she liked them all, as students went, so she wasn't in the mood to chastise them about it. Irma did have a strange urge to throw one of the more desecrated books at the back of Lavender Brown's head as she made an inordinate amount of noise with her friends. Shrugging it off, she went back to cataloguing the new stock intake and kept her mind working at optimum level.

Cedric smiled widely, always amused at how much Hermione's brain actually worked. It was like he could practically _hear_ the cogs in her mind turning and processing the information that she had just learned or a new magical thesis she had conjured. It was one of the things he liked very much about her. She was a spirited learner, but also knew how to use her mind logically and effectively. A lot of the more academically inclined students lacked a fundamental knowledge of both logic and common sense. Hermione possessed both and it only made her more brilliant in regards to both academia and emotional understanding. Frankly, he didn't know how she did it.

Viktor knew what she was about to say. Only because he had had the same thought earlier on in the day when the news first arrived to him. Hermione had a very specific look on her face, one of worry and bemusement. He didn't see the latter a lot on Hermione, which bothered him. He wasn't overly concerned about the point she was going to make, but he _was_ concerned that it was playing on Hermione's mind. He had always conjured up a solution that he thought would work and would posit it with his boyfriend and girlfriend once the correct time came.

"That's surprising," Cedric smirked.

Hermione waved him off and continued. "How are we going to work at the Yule Ball? If Champions have to have dates, then you both have two. How do we decide what happens there?"

Cedric nodded, not having thought about and Viktor congratulated himself on his own skills of deduction and being able to read Hermione's facial expressions. He himself was a man of few words, so he spent a lot of time just watching and learning how to study people. It sometimes helped him in Quidditch situations, but mostly it was for his own amusement and fascination.

"I have an idea if you're willing to hear it. I was thinking earlier that Cedric and I would dance the waltz together and then alternate dances with you and each other throughout the night. That way, nobody is neglected and we all spend approximately the same amount of time together. There are no hurt feelings and all three of us get to enjoy ourselves."

"That's a really logical solution, Vik," Hermione smiled.

Viktor laughed to himself. "Are you a little put out that you didn't think of it yourself?"

"Maybe," she grinned shyly as Cedric wrapped his arm around her. Viktor took her hand from across the table and grasped Cedric's other along with it. He quite enjoyed the feeling of being close to two people. He was leaving himself vulnerable to one more person than usual, but he was reaping the rewards in having comfort and support from an extra source. Viktor wondered why everybody didn't consider having more than one romantic partner as an option. Probably because not everybody actually understood it, but it had taken some getting used to for him as well and he was sure that Ced and Hermione had gone through the same questioning that he had.

It was more difficult for Viktor than accepting his sexuality, because that had been apparent ever since childhood. He was attracted to girls and he was attracted to guys. He hadn't known that it was even different to what everybody else felt because he had always thought that attraction was fluid. He had never felt any other way about it and assumed that that was the way everybody went about finding people they were attracted to. It was only when he revealed it to others and experienced some negativity that he realised that it wasn't everybody's feelings.

Cedric shrugged. "It _is_ a good idea, though. I can't wait to see how people react when we start dancing together. You do know how to waltz, don't you?"

Viktor nodded proudly.

Cedric chuckled at him. "Good, because I don't and I need you to teach me."

Hermione swatted his arm mockingly whilst Viktor rolled his eyes.

"Don't you have _any_ formal traditions in wizarding Britain?" He wondered.

Cedric blinked back blankly. "I don't understand the question," he deadpanned.

"Never mind," Viktor smiled, "I'll just find some time to teach you. Hermione, do you need lessons?"

She shook her head. "I took dance lessons as a child and I learned the waltz a few years ago. It's one of my favourites. Though it won't matter anyway, since I won't be dancing it."

Cedric grinned. "I'd be happy to let you take my place."

Viktor rolled his eyes once more. "You're not getting out of this one. You're required to dance it anyway. I'll see what strings I can pull to get them to play another piece of music that we can waltz to." Hermione beamed at the gesture and nodded.

"Thank you, Vik. I'm actually looking forward to this. I didn't think I would ever grow accustomed to excitement over a school event, but this is going to be good."

"Not even Quidditch?" Viktor grinned, knowing how Hermione had an obvious distaste for the sport and he assumed that it was because of the lack of learning involved.

Hermione matched his grin. "I think I'm the only person in Gryffindor who doesn't care whether they win the Quidditch Cup or not. Though I've always had to pretend for Harry that I'm extremely interested in the team's outcome. Obviously, I want Harry to do well, but I'm not overly concerned. So much for house spirit, right? I'm much more interested in the House Cup, where points are awarded because of academic excellence."

"I imagine you have earned a lot of House Points over the years."

Hermione shrugged. "I guess so."

From that stemmed a debate about Hermione's self-worth, which Hermione desperately wanted to avoid. That meant several compliments and she never really knew how to handle that. One step at a time, she guessed.

* * *

Fleur Delacour surveyed the room with a wry smile.

As it turned out, The Yule Ball was exquisitely decorated. The theme was silver and blue, it seemed. There was definitely a Christmassy vibe in the air as the Professors had enchanted snow to drizzle over the scene, dusting the floor with a wispy layer of the stuff without it sticking to everyone's hair and clothes. Oh, the miracles of magic. Fleur was most pleased about the proceedings. She loved fancy occasions and opportunities where her extensive etiquette classes paid off. Formality was her thing, so she hoped that Roger Davies was also well-suited to the event.

She hadn't really gotten off to the best start where Hogwarts and the Tournament were concerned. Her entrance had been well-received by the male (and some of the female) contingency at the school, but her lacklustre performance in the First Task had set her back some. She was the only female Champion and some wrote her off already, but she had the Second Task pretty much down and she was going to come back from this. Cedric Diggory was already being tipped as the winner, but Fleur wanted more than anything for it to be her. It wasn't the money or the glory, but to prove to herself that she could do it.

Fleur always felt overlooked, mainly because of her looks. People objectified her and perhaps she objectified herself, but she hated the way her intelligence wasn't put into the equation. She had overheard a Ravenclaw girl saying that the Goblet picked her because of her looks. Fleur knew that it wasn't true, but it didn't stop the doubts swirling around her head.

When she turned to Roger for a drink or maybe some thoughtful conversation, but he wasn't looking at her.

Fleur turned her head to meet the object of his gaze and she saw her.

Hermione Granger, descending the staircase like a queen would to her followers, one hand poised on the banister, the other by her side. Her hair was styled beautifully and her dress flew down her body and trailed behind her. And for the first time, Fleur _saw_ her for who she was. Not just the bookworm the Slytherins portrayed her as, not the accessory on Harry Potter's arm. She was her own woman, as radiant as they came, elegance pouring off her in waves.

For once, Fleur Delacour was not the Belle of the Ball.

And, for once, maybe she didn't mind all that much.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Sorry for the wait! Yule Ball pt II coming up in Chapter 9! You do not want to miss it! :) xoxo**


	9. The Ball Interlude

Chapter 9- The Ball Interlude

* * *

Cedric heard Harry approach before he saw him. His eyes were glued to the scene in front of him; Hermione and Viktor twirling and galloping in a fiery dance, a seamless choreography as if they had practised it over and over again. They hadn't, of course, there had not been time for that, but it was as if they had danced hundreds of other dances together. So when Harry threatened to interrupt the bliss he was watching, Cedric was reluctant to let him.

"They look great, don't they?" Harry commented, his words stinging Cedric more than he realised they would. It was pure, hard fact that Hermione Granger and Viktor Krum made an exquisite couple and he often worried about where he would fit into that. Their relationship was equal and always had been, but that didn't stop the doubts from entering his mind.

Cedric cleared his throat, nodding. "They really do. I'm so lucky to have them."

Harry perched on the ledge underneath them, hands resting on his knees. "I always wondered who Hermione would find."

Cedric chuckled slightly, eyes flickering away from the beautiful dance. "I always thought it'd be you."

Harry rolled his eyes. "I've heard that before." Shaking his head vehemently, he added, "Hermione's like my sister. She's always been there for me like a sibling would be. Out of anyone, I'm glad she has you and Viktor."

"I thought I'd be receiving the older brother speech," Cedric rebutted coolly.

Harry shook his head, tapping his feet along to the song, as offbeat as he always had been. "Nah. She's ten months older than me, anyway, and she definitely doesn't need me to defend her honour. She does that all by herself."

"She certainly does."

"Hey, is there something wrong?" Harry frowned.

Cedric's lips quirked into a small smile. "I never realised you were this observant."

Harry scoffed, watching the lights dance around the room. Professor Flitwick had conjured some fireflies to swirl into hurricanes outside the space which made the whole occasion so much more enchanting to look at. There was a slight balcony area which was currently occupied by Draco Malfoy and Pansy Parkinson. No way was Harry even thinking about going near those two. Individually, they were two of Harry's least favourite people but together they were even worse.

"Observation is inevitable when you grow up on the outside. Before Hogwarts, friends weren't easy for me to come by. So I watched everybody else having fun so maybe I could learn how to make friends of my own at some point. I've gotten very good at it. While I'm on a roll, I'm guessing it has something to do with your partners."

Cedric sipped the last of his pumpkin juice and smiled wryly. "You'd be right. Don't get me wrong, I care about them both very much. It's just my problem. I mean, _look_ at them. Hermione is radiant and Viktor is everybody's walking wet dream."

Harry raised an eyebrow and grinned. "Cedric. You're not exactly ugly. I heard a group of Ravenclaw girls clamouring over the fact that you were taken and that they couldn't have you. Not Viktor, _you_. Yeah, he's an international celebrity—."

"Way to cheer me up, Harry," Cedric snorted.

" _But_ that doesn't mean that you're not equally as special. Trust me, Hermione wouldn't be with you if you weren't worth it. And besides, fame isn't everything. I've been mentioned in history books and I'm only here because Parvati couldn't find anybody else to go with. Also because going with me meant that Ron would be available to go with her sister."

Cedric chuckled to himself. "I thought you and Ron might have given up the pretence altogether and gone with each other."

"I prefer my dates to not be wearing frilly circus attire," Harry retorted sharply.

"He does look rather ridiculous."

"I reckon only he could pull it off, though."

"Only he would try," Cedric quipped, making Harry laugh freely. The younger boy coughed quietly and breathed in deeply. "You know, when I first realised that my name had come out of the Goblet of Fire, I was terrified. Then I was almost impressed because I'd been chosen. Then I remembered that I didn't actually enter and went back to being terrified."

"I can imagine."

"The main reason I was terrified was because I was up against you. You've been top of your year for six years straight and, if you were doing exams this year, you'd be top again. You're the Hermione of your year."

Cedric laughed. "I wouldn't go that far. Hermione is something else entirely."

"There you go underestimating yourself. You're tied for first place in this tournament. You missed one point and that was because of tournament politics, not because of your performance."

Cedric shrugged. "I guess, but—."

"But nothing," Harry interrupted sternly. "You're a good guy, Cedric. You should remember that."

The conversation was interrupted by an awkwardly positioned Parvati Patil. She hovered over them with her arms folded.

"Harry, I thought part of this arrangement meant that you would at least dance with me every so often."

"We danced before!" Harry countered, confused as to what he had actually signed up for.

She scoffed. "Because it was _mandatory_. Seriously, do you know anything about how to treat a girl?"

Cedric's eyes widened infinitesimally. "Harry would love to dance with you. Wouldn't you, Harry?" Cedric nudged his friend pointedly.

Harry nodded uncertainly. "Sure, I like this song anyway."

Cedric suddenly wondered whether Harry even _knew_ this song, never mind actively enjoyed it. There wasn't much time to think at the Yule Ball, as things were quite fast paced. Dances were ending and drinks were being had and Cedric relished the few seconds he had to take it all in. He was at a grand ball with a boyfriend and girlfriend he deeply cared about with the opportunity presenting itself for him to finally make something of himself. The Triwizard Tournament was his time to show everyone that he was more than what they thought him to be. And he was going to do exactly that.

* * *

"Hermione?"

When the girl turned around, she was surprised at what she saw.

"Fleur? Hi, uh, did you need something?"

Fleur smiled _that_ radiant smile and Hermione understood why everybody was so enchanted by her. Not that it had the same particular effect on her, but she could definitely see the appeal and why every single boy and quite a substantial number of the girls at Hogwarts and Durmstrang had wanted to ask her to the Yule Ball.

"I just wanted to talk," Fleur replied smoothly, taking a seat next to the girl as Cedric and Viktor danced slowly, merely rocking back and forth to the slow song being conducted by a magical orchestra. "I thought now might be a good time, while you're not being stolen away by your boyfriends."

Hermione eyed her cautiously. "You don't disapprove."

"Of your relationship? Heavens, no! Love is love and the three of you make a very good trio. The beauty is hard to miss."

Hermione's eyes twinkled brightly. "They're quite something, aren't they?"

Fleur tutted. "I was actually talking about you. Sure, the boys are very eye-catching, but you've stolen the night. You're very beautiful."

Hermione blushed. "I'm not you," she mumbled automatically.

Fleur understood immediately. She guessed that people had made fun of Hermione for some amount of time because of various things and she had been conditioned to believe them. The world wasn't fair in its treatment of anybody, but from what she had heard, Hermione Granger was exceptional in just about every way. "No, you're not. You're _you_ and it's important that you realise that, Hermione. Look, I don't know you personally besides this conversation, but from what I can tell, you're a lot more than you think you are."

Hermione grinned. "Thanks, Fleur. Are you having fun with Roger?"

Fleur shrugged passively. "He's not bad company, but we're here as friends. I have a beautiful girl waiting for me back in France who wouldn't be happy if I hooked up with Roger Davies."

Hermione's eyes widened.

Fleur smirked and pointed at herself. "Bisexual and proud. Don't worry, I'm not looking for entrance into your triangle of hot teenagers."

At that point, the music ended and Cedric and Viktor took a moment to kiss each other chastely on the cheek and wander back towards Hermione.

Fleur winked. "I guess that's my cue to leave. It was nice talking to you, Hermione."

Hermione smiled warmly. "You too, Fleur. You look gorgeous. But you know that already."

Fleur rolled her eyes fondly and resumed dancing with her Beauxbatons friends. Hermione tried to take in things that Fleur had said, but the Yule Ball was hardly the place for introspection. Her handsome boyfriends were quickly approaching. Hermione decided that there was nothing on her mind that she couldn't postpone until the morning. For now, her boyfriends needed her attention. And she was happy to give it.

* * *

"You know, it's hard to find a stolen corner of this castle. Despite its size, there always seems to be somebody everywhere," Hermione commented as the trio took a moment for themselves. Viktor perched on a bench leaning against the wall. Hermione took the middle spot and Cedric sat opposite the Quidditch player. It was a comfortable dynamic, effortless and without discussion. Each party had their own place to fit in the puzzle and each of them knew exactly where that was.

"In my first year," Cedric smiled, "I found this abandoned classroom on the second floor where nobody ever went. Seriously, I spent a lot of time there and nobody bothered me. It's a little like your corner of the library, Hermione. A place where you would go to get yourself together and collect your thoughts. You got a place like that back home, Vik?"

The Bulgarian boy grinned widely as he thought of his sanctuary. "Absolutely. Durmstrang isn't known for its grand turrets and forests, but it knows its way around a dungeon. There was one particular one I used to frequent after hours. I'd sneak out of bed with either a book or just my thoughts and just _be_ for a while. When things got too much, that's where I'd go. If I had an especially cruel Quidditch practise, that's where I'd go."

"You must miss Bulgaria," Hermione said, wrapping an arm around Viktor's waist.

The man shrugged. "It's not so bad. Not when I have such good company around me."

"Smooth," Cedric commented, loosening his tie a little. The Great Hall was still visible from their point of view and Cedric was mesmerised, even still, by the artificial snowflakes that drizzled down from the ceiling (which had been enchanted to look like a wintery sky, the pale grey hues swirling amongst each other.

"I try," Viktor shrugged. "You know, we haven't talked about what's going to happen after the Tournament is over."

Cedric shook his head. "We're not having this discussion until we absolutely need to. We all knew from the beginning that our time together was finite, we're not going to shorten it in our minds by running down the clock."

Hermione blinked passively. "I wish we had more time."

"There's always summer," Viktor suggested. "Needless to say we'll still be in contact, but I could come over for a few weeks before term starts again."

"I've always wanted to see Bulgaria," Hermione thought aloud. "No, Cedric's right. We can talk about this after the Third Task, can't we?"

Viktor nodded. "Right."

A sudden cough interrupted their discussion.

"Oh, Professor McGonagall," Cedric smiled politely. "Is something wrong?"

The woman shook her head. "I'm afraid the Yule Ball is coming to a conclusion now. You three should exchange goodnights and disperse to your dormitories. I hope you enjoyed the evening."

"Thank you, Professor," Hermione beamed. "It was a lovely event."

With that, Professor McGonagall returned to the Great Hall to finish sending students back to their Towers.

Hermione turned back to her boyfriends. "Thank you both for a really lovely night, I had a wonderful time."

The boys shared similar opinions and Viktor sighed softly.

"What is it?"

"I just…really hate the Slytherin Common Room."

Cedric chuckled. "I don't imagine it's particularly well lit."

"That's an understatement if I ever heard one," Viktor replied swiftly. "Oh, are we doing a strategy meeting tomorrow?"

Hermione bit her lip. "Professor Snape shortened the deadline for our Potions essays, so I have to get that done but I'll be free to strategise after that."

Cedric shook her head. "Don't let yourself fall behind, Mione. We said that from the start, remember? If it was interfering with your schoolwork, you weren't obligated to help. Viktor and I can run one tomorrow and fill you in when you're available."

Hermione nodded. "Okay. I expect detailed briefings though."

"Always," Viktor agreed. "I'd better head down. If I leave it any longer, the Slytherins won't leave me alone until I sign things for them." He kissed both Hermione and Cedric on the lips, longing to spend a little longer feeling their warmth. He pulled away reluctantly, squeezing their hands and wishing them a restful night of sleep.

Hermione turned to Cedric. "And then there were two."

"Are you coming?" Cedric offered his arm.

Hermione shook her head. "I said I'd find Harry and Ron before we left. They're probably still waiting in the Great Hall for me."

Cedric nodded. "I had a lovely night with you both. Thank you for making this so special."

"Thank you for being a wonderful dance partner," Hermione leaned up and kissed his mouth deeply. "See you tomorrow?"

"Of course," Cedric replied, before leaving her to herself. Hermione watched him turn the corner and released a breath.

She really had had the most perfect night she could have imagined for herself. Two amazing companions who wanted her for _her_. Hermione never would have dreamed that she would have found one person like Cedric or Viktor, but to find them both in the same place? The odds of that happening were extremely slim, Hermione thought. She knew that she couldn't take it for granted and she was thankful for every second that she got to spend with them.

Even though the Second Task was still just under two months away, the thought of it made Hermione feel sick. If a dragon wasn't bad enough, the mystery of the Egg was even more daunting. It relied heavily on their skill and the boys had only returned from their late night bath with a riddle that they had intended to analyse in detail but were prevented from doing so by the announcement of the Yule Ball. That had left no time for preparation.

In the end, preparation was what was going to get them through the next two challenges that lay ahead. The Triwizard Tournament was infamous for being unpredictable and fatal to some. Even with the new safety rule, anything could happen in these next two tasks. Hermione just prayed that she still had her boyfriends and her best friend alive after the Tournament ended.


	10. In This World Alone

Chapter 10- In This World Alone

* * *

Cedric and Viktor, with express permission from Hermione of course, assembled in the abandoned library corner while the winter sun shined through the patterned Hogwarts window. They had had some trouble ridding the section of Viktor's fangirls. Cedric thought that it would contribute to his insecurity, but he found himself both amused and thankful that he wasn't hounded by crazy girls just wanting his attention for purely superficial reasons.

That wasn't to say that Cedric didn't have his fans, of course he did. They were just limited to the Hogwarts crowd, basically everybody except for the Gryffindors. And even some of the Gryffindors had abandoned their housemate Harry in favour of supporting him. Cedric had encouraged they stay behind Harry because if he won they'd regret not supporting somebody from their own house. He had expected the Hufflepuffs and Slytherins to get behind him, but the Ravenclaws seemed to be polarised, using all of their knowledge on strategy and probability to factually work out who was more likely to win. Some of them just preferred Cedric as a person and that was their reason for being on Team Cedric. Cedric had actively discouraged such a label, but his friends were adamant to drum up support.

It was only then, when they were gathered around the table just the two of them, that Cedric and Viktor realised how much they had actually been relying on Hermione. Not to get them through the tasks, but to motivate them. They both wanted to win for her, and for the other, so her presence united them, caused them to focus on the Tournament more so than they did when they were alone, or even when they were with each other.

Like right now, for instance. Cedric sat, idly flicking through a book on advanced spellcasting. Viktor was looking out of the window, random thoughts flitting through his mind, none of them actually about the Second Task. He thought a little bit about Fleur and what Hermione had relayed to them about their conversation at the Yule Ball.

Viktor wondered if he had gone about reading people all wrong. He had previously thought he had Fleur Delacour read so definitively that it required no further introspection. Oh, he wrong he had been. From what Hermione had told them, there was a lot more to Fleur than met the eye. He knew that her natural beauty allowed people, including himself, to shoehorn her into the appropriate category of person, but it seemed that Fleur was all about challenging those ideas and making sure that she was always keeping people on their toes, always making people second guess themselves.

And it was that, amongst other things, that made her an actual competitor in the Triwizard Tournament and not just an afterthought like a lot of people thought. He had heard the opinions on the winner. Most people predicted Cedric, with Viktor himself a close second based on both prior standings and also the First Task results. Fleur was a solid third place with Harry unsurprisingly trailing behind in last. Viktor rather thought that anything could happen and that he had probably only done as well as he had because of Hermione and her brilliant planning and strategy sessions. He knew that if Hermione were in his head, she would be telling him that he had done well based on his own merit and that she had only been suggesting things and that he had done it entirely himself. Both Viktor and Cedric knew that this was not the case. Viktor also knew that he and Cedric were not _totally_ relying on Hermione, they obviously had natural skills and quick thinking of their own, but Hermione looked at things in ways that neither of them would ever actually think of. She was very unique.

"What are you thinking about?" Cedric piped up from opposite Viktor. The former had his head resting on his hands, staring lovingly at the Durmstrang boy. "You know that your pupils dilate when you're deep in thought."

"So says my mother," Viktor chuckled. "I can't believe you noticed that, not many people do."

Cedric smirked. "Not many people are looking at you the same way that I am."

Viktor sighed. "I was thinking of the Tournament. And about Hermione and Fleur."

"Together?"

Viktor just raised an eyebrow.

"Right. Sorry. Carry on."

Viktor grinned widely at his boyfriend. "What Hermione told us about Fleur…we really misjudged her."

"Yeah," Cedric agreed, "but only because that's exactly how she wanted it. I mean, we all had a strategy going into this thing about how we wanted to appear. Right?"

Viktor paused for a moment before eventually shrugging. "I will cautiously admit that I was planning to capitalise on my…uh…celebrity."

Cedric nodded. "I figured as much. It's not a bad thing, Vik, so don't think you're a bad person for wanting to get ahead. I was going to use home court advantage and my Hogwarts reputation to…well, I don't know, I was sure it'd do _something_."

The two shared a laugh before realising something.

"We used the same strategy," Viktor commented.

"Hermione."

"That makes it sound like we used her. I don't know, I'm still shocked that this thing worked out so well the way it did. The three of us."

Viktor slid his hand across the table for Cedric to grab. He had to admit to himself that Cedric was the alpha male in their relationship, as much as he longed to be the type himself. Cedric's hand was warm and his thumb stroked soft circles across Viktor's skin, making him shiver.

They sat in a comfortable silence until Viktor had a question.

"Do you really think we can win this?"

Cedric shrugged. "Think about it, there's a fifty percent chance of one of us winning. We're both talented and capable, I don't see why not."

Viktor nodded. "Can we make an agreement where if the other one wins, we're happy for them. I mean, I don't think either of us are the type to be secretly bitter, but just in case."

"I was going to suggest this, actually. I think it's a good idea. If we're bitter, we get over it and focus on being happy for the other person. The Tournament is a one-time thing and there aren't any lasting repercussions of not winning. Even just competing is something to be proud of, so I think we can be happy either way. At this rate, Fleur's going to rise up and take the Cup."

Viktor smiled. "I wouldn't be surprised if they found a way to award it to Hermione. She'd probably win without competing."

"If anyone could do it, it'd be her."

Viktor looked up as he heard a familiar sound behind him. His eyes rolled. "Oh god, they found it."

Cedric nodded knowingly. The group of girls that swarmed Viktor wherever he went. "I'll deal with this."

Viktor put his head in his hands. He was sharing a nice moment with his boyfriend, could they not leave him alone?

Cedric slipped out of his seat, regrettably removing his hand from Viktor's grasp, and stood in front of the eight or so girls who though he hadn't noticed them. "You do realise that I can see you, right? You're not hidden at all."

A Hufflepuff girl snorted. "We're here to see Viktor Krum. Move it, Diggory."

Cedric smirked. "Oh, Ellen, your crush is hopeless. That's coming from his boyfriend. Now we have things we need to be doing so if you don't mind just leaving us alone, that'd be great." Viktor would've thought Cedric was being polite judging by his words, but his tone was acerbic and sarcastic and he loved every second of it. Cedric was always so nice to people; seeing him say what was really on his mind was a true gift.

But the girls scattered and that was what mattered.

Ooh, a rhyme!

Cedric settled back into his seat and smiled. "I hope I didn't overstep."

Viktor took his hand once again. "Thank you."

Cedric could see the earnest in Viktor's eyes. "This really gets to you, doesn't it?"

Viktor sighed, knowing that he was going to open up. "I just wanted to play Quidditch. When they told me that I could play for my country at 16, I was thrilled. Nobody else had ever done that before. I was the youngest Seeker in the country's history and I focused on that. I didn't realise everything that was going to come. I mean, I knew how I felt about my sporting idols, but I never really thought that that would happen to me because I was so young.

"But it was the opposite. Girls as young as seven would come up to me asking me for pictures and autographs and, while it was nice at first, it became tiring. So I tried to quit."

"You tried to quit Quidditch?" Cedric was shocked.

"I did. The manager wouldn't let me. Said I was too valuable and that I'd signed a contract. Sort of like Harry in this Tournament actually."

"That's why you were so impartial about Hermione making amends with him," Cedric deduced.

Viktor nodded. "Pretty much. I know what it's like to be the youngest part of a competition or a team. People underestimate you and that makes you underestimate yourself. It's likely that Harry wasn't trying so he had an excuse. If he didn't try, it didn't make him look bad if he lost. But if he had worked hard and then lost? They would've said "that was bound to happen" or something like that. Even if he didn't know what he was doing, he was protecting himself.

"Now, don't get me wrong, he shouldn't have treated Hermione the way he did, but I understand why he did. It's hard, constantly being watched. As many supporters as I have, there are always people waiting for me to trip up so that they can prove themselves right. It's a tricky lifestyle to cope with sometimes. The positives are great, but the negatives are almost enough to outweigh them."

Viktor brushed a thumb over Cedric's knuckle. "You and Hermione have been a big part of my settling in here. It makes it a lot easier to ignore the faces when I have two I can concentrate on. Two very beautiful faces."

Cedric smiled, overcome with feelings. "Promise me that this won't be over once the Tournament ends."

"I thought we weren't talking about that."

"I suppose we have to, right? So that we have a plan? Hermione and I can come out to see you in Bulgaria. I've always wanted to see it."

Viktor blushed and beamed. "That'd be nice. I can show you where I grew up and you can meet my family."

"I'd love that. I'd love to learn about how you grew up."

Madam Pince interrupted their moment. "Excuse me, boys, but there's an unusually large gaggle of girls outside the library, they all want to see you two. They're creating a fuss."

Viktor sighed. "We'll just go."

"No, we don't have to."

"I know we don't, it's just easier this way. Pick your battles, Ced. This one isn't worth the fight. We can go for a walk or something."

"Oh, how Harry's cloak would come in handy right about now," Cedric whispered as they left, walking straight into the path of the girls and a few guys who had assembled outside of the library, presumably having been kicked out Madam Pince for creating a disturbance. Cedric saw Ellen the Hufflepuff and scowled at her as he walked past. It did feel good to be petty, Cedric rather thought.

Viktor just stared straight ahead as they tried to follow him. Cedric cut them off and they slipped into the Grand Staircase.

When they realised nobody was following them and that they had given up, Cedric intertwined his fingers with Viktor's once more as they headed out into the wintery air.


End file.
